Why Janie Chang can't get over Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient
This interview originally aired on Jan. 28, 2019.
Janie Chang is a historical fiction writer from Vancouver. She draws inspiration from the stories she was told as a child about life in a small Chinese town before the First World War. In her 2017 novel, Dragon Springs Road, Chang tells the story of a young girl of mixed Chinese and European heritage, abandoned by her mother but protected by a fox spirit.
Chang is also an avid reader. One novel she's read many times is Michael Ondaatje's Booker Prize-winning The English Patient.
"There are so many books that I love, but in recent years I keep returning to The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje. I will just open the book at random because the language is so beautiful. It's what I aspire to... and I don't know if that will ever happen!"
Janie Chang's comments have been edited for length and clarity.