Book Launch & In Conversation with Emma Pei Yin

Launching her book, Emma Pei Yin will be in conversation with Ayesha Inoon, on her debut novel When Sleeping Women Wake – Hachette Australia

About the Book
An epic and emotional story of three spirited women - a mother, her daughter, their maid - during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong

1941. The wealthy Tang family has settled in Hong Kong after fleeing Shanghai. As the First Wife of the family, Mingzhu leads a glamorous but lonely existence - mothering the son of her husband's concubine, overseeing her daughter Qiang's education, and directing their household of servants, including her long-time confidante, Biyu.

When the Japanese invade the island, the three women's paths wildly diverge. Mingzhu's affinity for languages spares her physical labour but she's coerced into serving an enemy captain. Qiang and Biyu suffer brutal factory work and food rations until an encounter with the East River Column Resistance fighters separates them. As war rages around them, each woman holds onto the hope that the others are alive. Can they fight for their freedom and still find their way back to each other?

'A heartbreaking, moving, and soaring novel. An important literary feat from an exciting new voice. Emma Pei Yin uncovers the hidden history of Hong Kong and lets us befriend the women who have the power to transform us as we witness their journeys of self-discovery and survival' NGUYEN PHAN QUE MAI, global bestselling author of The Mountains Sing and Dust Child

'When Sleeping Women Wake explores the untold histories of women's war experience under Pei Yin's steady hand. Courage, strength and power bleed from every page, every chapter brims with tension and turmoil . . . A gripping piece of historical fiction to add to your bookshelf' ALLI PARKER, bestselling author of At the Foot of the Cherry Tree

About Emma Pei Yin
Emma Pei Yin is an Australian-Hong Kong Chinese writer and editor. Her work has been featured in publications such as Mekong Review, Being Asian Australian, HerCanberra, Aniko Press, The Hong Kong Review and Books+Publishing. In 2023, BookPeople and Penguin Random House Australia nominated her as Bookseller of the Year. That same year, her manuscript, Chasing Echoes in the Rain, was shortlisted for the Allen & Unwin Voices from the Intersection Mentorship Programme. She lives and works on Ngunnawal Country with her partner and their extremely barky dachshund, Lady. When Sleeping Women Wake is her first novel

About Ayesha Inoon
Ayesha Inoon is a Sri Lankan-Australian writer whose work is shaped by her rich cultural heritage and lived experience. Her debut novel, Untethered—winner of the 2022 ASA/HQ Commercial Fiction Prize and highly commended in both the 2024 ACT Book of the Year and the ACT Literary Awards for Fiction—draws partly from her own journey as an immigrant Muslim woman. Her feature articles have appeared in SBS Australia, The Sunday Times Sri Lanka, Serendib, and Explore Sri Lanka. Ayesha’s highly anticipated second novel is due in 2026.

About the Event
• Books will be available for purchase and signing at the event.
• Registration is required for this event.
• Accessible parking spaces directly below the Harry Hartog ANU Bookshop are available should you require them. Parking at ANU/Harry Hartog
• If you do not feel well, please refrain from attending this event.
• Disability Access available - please ask in-store.