Jen Sookfong Lee
Jennifer Sookfong Lee | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 22, 1976 |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Language | English |
| Citizenship | Canadian |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Children | 1 |
| Website | |
| sookfong | |
Jen Sookfong Lee (born July 22, 1976) is a Chinese Canadians broadcaster and novelist. A radio personality for CBC Radio One in Vancouver, British Columbia, she contributes a regular literary segment called "Westcoast Words" to local programs On the Coast and All Points West and is a regular contributor to the national program The Next Chapter.[1] In the CBC's national Canada Reads competition in 2009, she defended Brian Francis's novel Fruit.
Her published works include the adult novels The End of East (2007) and The Better Mother (2011),[1][2] the young adult novel Shelter (2011),[3] the non-fiction book Gentlemen of the Shade (2017),[4] and the short story "Chill, Hush" in the anthology TOK: Writing the New City (2009).[5] She also co-edited the anthology Whatever Gets You Through: Twelve Women on Life After Sexual Assault with Stacey May Fowles.[6] Her novel The Conjoined was published in 2016 and was nominated for the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and the Dublin Literary Award.[7][8]
She served on the jury for the 2011 Dayne Ogilvie Prize for emerging Canadian LGBT writers, selecting Farzana Doctor as that year's winner.[9]
Since July 2021, she has been a commissioning editor for ECW Press.[10]
Her 2025 novel The Hunger We Pass Down was shortlisted for the Jim Deva Prize for Writing that Provokes in 2026.[11]
Born and raised in East Vancouver, she and her son now live in North Burnaby.[12]
Bibliography
- The End of East (Knopf Canada, 2007)
- The Better Mother (Knopf Canada, 2011)
- The Conjoined (ECW Press, 2016)
- Finding Home: The Journey of Immigrants and Refugees (Orca Book Publishers, 2021)
- The Shadow List (Wolsak and Wynn, 2021)
- Superfan: How Pop Culture Broke My Heart (McClelland & Stewart, 2023)
- The Hunger We Pass Down (McClelland & Stewart, 2025)
References
- ^ a b "On Writing, with Jen Sookfong Lee". Open Book Toronto. 2011-06-01. Archived from the original on 2015-09-21. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ "Book Award winners and short lists". City of Vancouver. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ Mead-Willis, Sarah (2011-07-03). "Dead Time by C. Conlin / Shelter by J. S. Lee". The Deakin Review of Children's Literature. 1 (1). doi:10.20361/G2WC75. ISSN 1927-1484.
- ^ Lui, Elaine (2017-08-18). "On Jen Sookfong Lee's book Gentlemen Of The Shade: My Own Private Idaho and Intro for August 18, 2017". LaineyGossip. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ Pevere, Geoff (2009-04-26). "A million stories in the naked city". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ Mackie, Richard (2019-09-01). "#606 Whatever gets you through". The British Columbia Review. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ "BC Book Prize Finalists". UBC School of Creative Writing. 2017-03-07. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ "The Conjoined". Dublin Literary Award. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ Spencer, Jason (2011-06-01). "Farzana Doctor to receive Dayne Ogilvie Grant". Quill and Quire. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ "Jen Sookfong Lee". Asian Heritage in Canada. Toronto Metropolitan University Libraries. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ Drudi, Cassandra (2026-04-14). "Finalists announced for 2026 B.C. and Yukon Book Prizes". Quill and Quire. Retrieved 2026-05-03.
- ^ Lee, Jen Sookfong (2025-06-18). "Open Letters and Closed Doors". The Humber Literary Review. Retrieved 2026-05-03.