Jessamine Chan is a firm believer in the power of books.
The bestselling author of The School for Good Mothers spoke with PEOPLE at the New York Celebration of Reading, hosted by the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy, on Nov. 20. Chan noted that readers have recently reached out to her about her novel, a literary dystopian book.
The School for Good Mothers follows a mother named Frida who, after a bad day, finds herself part of a residential government program, which will determine whether she can regain custody of her daughter. The novel was chosen by Jenna Bush Hager for her Read with Jenna book club, and was a bestseller following its 2022 release.
“I am really proud to have written a novel of ideas that is primarily about a mother’s love,” Chan said. “I think that there’s a lot of different ways into the book. I don’t know if people are reading for solace or for intellectual pursuit. I think it really depends on the mood that they’re in.”
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“I actually have exchanged messages with some readers,” Chan said. “I feel really, really lucky to be part of the conversation.”
Chan, a featured author at the Celebration of Reading event, shared in her remarks that she wrote the novel in her mid-thirties, when she and her husband were still deciding whether to have children. The author notes that reading, ultimately, serves as a way to consider new perspectives.
“I think books can be conversation starters in a really important way,” Chan says. “it’s so important to read in terms of understanding different perspectives, and I think that has become even more important now.”
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The New York Celebration of Reading is an annual event hosted by the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy. Per their website, the non-profit organization aims to promote and expand literacy services for adults and families nationwide.
Beowulf Sheehan
“The more we can do to kind of break that cycle and get reading happening in the household, I think the more we’re more likely to disrupt that cycle,” the foundation’s president, Andrew Roberts, told PEOPLE.
“Until we get everyone working together, we’re not going to get there,” Roberts added. “This is not a problem that a K-12 system can solve alone. It’s going to take everyone.”
Chan spoke about the importance of reading in her own life during the event, particularly as a first generation Chinese-American.
“Reading was my only source of pleasure, my only escape. It was a reason to keep living,” Chan said.
“I’m sharing my story to highlight the way books can be a lifeline for any child who feels alone or who feels like they don’t belong. Reading comforted and healed me. It was a way to feed my soul while I was engaged in a daily struggle with people who refused to see me in my full humanity.”
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