TSAR Publications is proud to present The Palm Leaf Fan and Other Stories

From crumbling shops in Chinatown to decaying tanneries in Tangra, Kwai-yun Li’s collection of short stories expose us to the sights, sounds, and smells of a marginalized community in post-colonial Calcutta.

We peek into Wong’s Shoe Shop, where a mother arranges a marriage for her six-year-old daughter. We stop at a school for girls, where the principal singles out students who have large breasts for punishment. We pause by a temple guarded by a billy goat where family drama rages. We rally with politicians while monsoon rain drenches us. We relax under waving palms while the setting sun shimmers over the surface of the Tangra fishponds.

Li's sensitivity and quirky sense of humour will keep us wanting to return to the ghetto, again and again.

Kwai-yun Li ’s Hakka parents emigrated from Moi-yen , China to Calcutta , India , where Li was born. She grew up in Chattawalla Gully, in the old part of the city. She came to Canada through an arranged marriage and became an accountant. Li received a Canada Council writing grant in 1998.Currently studying Professional Writing at the University of Toronto , she co-authored A Kiss Beside the Monkey Bars.

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