Wai Chim

Originally from New York, Wai has been living in Sydney for many years. Growing up, her parents spoke little English and did their best to instil her with an appreciation for her Chinese culture and heritage. Meanwhile, she soaked up English and devoured Western culture through school, books and lots of television.

Wai graduated from Duke University in the US in 2004 and went on to complete a Graduate Certificate in Creative Writing at the University of Sydney in 2006. In 2012, she published her first middle-grade children's title, Chook Chook: Mei's Secret Pets with the University of Queensland Press (UQP), which has become a three-book series.

Wai's latest book is The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling, published by Allen & Unwin August 2019.
Anna Chiu has her hands pretty full looking after her brother and sister and helping out at her dad's restaurant, all while her mum stays in bed. Dad's new delivery boy, Rory, is a welcome distraction and even though she knows that things aren't right at home, she's starting to feel like she could just be a normal teen.
Bu when Mum finally gets out of bed, things go from bad to worse. And as Mum's condition worsens, Anna and her family question everything they understand about themselves and each other.
A nourishing tale about the crevices of culture, mental wellness and family.
Details at Allen & Unwin.

The Freedom Swimmer was Wai's first YA book, published in September 2016 with Allen & Unwin.
Ming survived the famine that killed his parents during China's 'Great Leap Forward', and lives a hard but adequate life, working in the fields. When a group of city boys comes to the village as part of a Communist Party re-education program, Ming and his friends aren't sure what to make of the new arrivals. They're not used to hard labour and village life. But despite his reservations, Ming befriends a charming city boy called Li. As the bitterness of life under the Party begins to take its toll on both boys, they begin to imagine the impossible: freedom.

When she's not writing, Wai works primarily in digital marketing, including social media and content strategy. She has worked in print journalism as well as on advertising and creative campaigns. Her other interests include cooking, yoga and ogling cute animals.

You can find her online at www.waichim.com.