Cirrus@Austlit

'A zebra gazing into the river asks himself, 'Am I a white horse with black stripes of a black horse with white stripes?' I put a similar question: am I a migrant who happens to be a writer or a writer who happens to be a migrant? The answers have implications, both 'for whom' I write and 'as who', and therefore for my artistic vision.' (Introduction)

'Sixteen exquisite stories exploring recent Chinese migration to Australia and elsewhere, exploring intergenerational and interracial relationships, the search for meaning, and the effects of isolation and the inability to express oneself in a second language. Best-selling author, Debra Adelaide, says Isabelle Li's prose is powerful, exquisite and finely tuned, and each story draws us deeper into the complex emotional and cultural dilemmas of characters who are solitary, sensitive, perceptive and powerless, sometimes all at once. 'What does it take to master a second language, to be so skilled in that language that you're published in it? Chinese/Australian writer and translator Isabelle Li reminds us that learning to love an adopted language does not come without its struggles.' ABC Radio National' (Publication summary)

'On the day of the Mid Autumn Festival Chinese-born Crystal prepares a traditional meal of mooncake and crab for her new Anglo-Australian family. What no-one around her realizes is that Crystal has recently said goodbye to her lover, a Chinese artist, and she is pregnant with his child. As she prepares the meal with her visiting father, news comes that the plane her lover was traveling on has crashed. As Crystal tries to hide her feelings her step-daughter asks her to tell them the story behind the mooncake - a story that suddenly has great resonance with her own life.'

Source: IMDB.