Book Launch | Tiger's Mouth by Lucy Tan

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ABOUT THE BOOK

When two young men meet during a tech internship, it sparks an intense friendship—and even more intense competition—in this sweeping novel of privilege, identity, and ambition from the acclaimed author of What We Were Promised.

Jack Chen, the oldest son of caterers from Queens, is an expert at studying the rich from afar. When he finagles his way into a prestigious internship at tech giant K.O. Systems, he’s prepared to fake everything: his credentials, his confidence, even his past. What he isn’t prepared for is his officemate, Jack Owens, the depressed son of the company’s billionaire founder, who’s only there for a summer reprieve from his father’s scrutiny at the family vacation house.

Their connection is immediate, built on mutual admiration. Chen sees in Owens the advantages he’s been denied; Owens sees in Chen someone free of the pain he’s been taught to hide. Owens, Chen, and Chen’s girlfriend quickly become close friends, but by summer's end the three can no longer outrun the lies they’ve told themselves and each other. As pressures build throughout the next few years, the two Jacks circle each other like opponents in their favorite board game, Go, each chasing the life the other was born into, from career to family to lovers. But the path to success and matters of the heart can test even the closest of friendships—and not all of them survive.

Nostalgic, heart-wrenching, and propulsive, Tiger’s Mouth is a nuanced portrait of complex friendship, family dynamics, and love in its most unexpected forms.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lucy Tan is the author of What We Were Promised, which was a Barnes and Noble Discover Pick, longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, and named a best book of the year by The Washington Post. Tan holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was winner of the August Derleth Prize. A recipient of support from Kundiman and the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing, Tan has published in journals such as American Short Fiction, McSweeney's, and Ploughshares. She currently lives and writes in Seattle, where she is also a bookseller at Secret Garden Books.

IN CONVERSATION WITH

Joanne Kwong is the president of Pearl River Mart, the iconic NYC Asian emporium established in 1971.

After the 2016 closing of the historic store, she joined her in-laws and reinvented the brand, establishing new locations and pop-ups in SoHo, Chelsea, Chinatown, and Flushing.

Today, under Joanne’s leadership, Pearl River remains the joyful shopping experience beloved by generations. It now also serves as a hub for the AAPI community and a springboard for entrepreneurs and artists. Pearl River Mart’s community-based approach has been recognized by The Wall Street Journal as “the future of retail” and by New York Magazine as one of its “Reasons to Love NY.”

Before leading Pearl River, Joanne was an attorney, law professor, and non-profit communications executive. She serves on the boards of New York Public Radio, Light Up Chinatown, the Meatpacking Business Improvement District, and the Columbia College Alumni Association, and was appointed to the U.S. Commission to Study the Creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture. In recent years, Joanne has been named one of Crain’s NY Business’ Notable Asian Leaders, Gold House’s A100 Most Impactful Asians, and Time Out NY’s “9 Amazing Women Who Changed New York for the Better.”