Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a historian, educator, and author with an abiding interest in stories that help bridge cultural divides. I first encountered tales of China as an elementary school student in Singapore. Years later, I studied Chinese and backpacked through China, after which I earned my M.A. in Asian Studies. I would go on to become a high school instructor, and this experience helped me teach AP World History ™ and IB (International Baccalaureate) History. I began writing my Jackie Tempo series as a way of providing accessible content in the classroom. Historical fiction has always helped provide deeper context for me and my students.


I wrote

Jackie Tempo and the Emperor's Seal

By Suzanne Litrel,

Book cover of Jackie Tempo and the Emperor's Seal

What is my book about?

In the mansion she shares with her eccentric Aunt Isobel, Jackie Tempo mourns her parents—until she discovers a mysterious book.…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Sources of Chinese Tradition: From Earliest Times to 1600

Suzanne Litrel Why did I love this book?

The late and renowned sinologist Wm. Theodore de Bary first published his groundbreaking, two-volume Sources of Chinese Tradition in 1960, to such favorable reception that it prompted a second edition, updated to incorporate additional sources that reflect late twentieth-century considerations, including gender and sexuality.

Volume I offers invaluable sources on Early Classical Chinese philosophy. The select writings of Confucius, Mencius, Lao Tze, for example, are excellent source material for educators looking for primary source documents and readers of Chinese antiquity (to 1644) wishing to engage in independent reading and research.

This book was one of several in “Asia through Fiction,” an undergraduate course I took which changed the course of my life in more ways than one. Not only did I meet my future husband our last year of university, but we also lived in Taiwan and backpacked around Mainland China the following year. This text helped deepen our appreciation of Chinese culture. 

Upon our return, I went on to earn my M.A. in Asian Studies, with Sources of Chinese Tradition by my side; I mined it again as a high school world history teacher (on-level and Advanced Placement) as well as for my newly created elective “Chinese Culture and Tradition.” Finally, I returned to this trusty and now-battered guide as reference for my book. 

By William Theodore De Bary (editor), Irene Bloom (editor), Joseph Adler (editor)

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Sources of Chinese Tradition as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A collection of seminal primary readings on the social, intellectual, and religious traditions of China, Sources of Chinese Tradition, Volume 1 has been widely used and praised for almost forty years as an authoritative resource for scholars and students and as a thorough and engaging introduction for general readers. Here at last is a completely revised and expanded edition of this classic sourcebook, compiled by noted China scholars Wm. Theodore de Bary and Irene Bloom. Updated to reflect recent scholarly developments, with extensive material on popular thought and religion, social roles, and women's education, this edition features new translations of…


Book cover of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

Suzanne Litrel Why did I love this book?

I’ve always turned to historical fiction to deepen my understanding of an era and help spark my imagination for class prep.

This book, set in late nineteenth-century China, helped me better contextualize the challenges confronting Chinese women at that time—and how they overcame, or at least endured them. I recently had the privilege of hearing Lisa See speak on her research and writing—she was quite engaging and shared much about her process.

She’s a passionate, dedicated, and disciplined scholar. This shines through in all her work, especially this bittersweet tale of friendship, love, and heartbreak.

By Lisa See,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Snow Flower and the Secret Fan as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Lily is the daughter of a humble farmer, and to her family she is just another expensive mouth to feed. Then the local matchmaker delivers startling news: if Lily's feet are bound properly, they will be flawless. In nineteenth-century China, where a woman's eligibility is judged by the shape and size of her feet, this is extraordinary good luck. Lily now has the power to make a good marriage and change the fortunes of her family. To prepare for her new life, she must undergo the agonies of footbinding, learn nu shu, the famed secret women's writing, and make a…


Book cover of Colors of the Mountain

Suzanne Litrel Why did I love this book?

I was fortunate to have met Da Chen when he was keynote speaker for our high school’s annual teen writer’s conference. I had read and recommended to my AP World History students his riveting Colors of the Mountain. 

He was warm with students and staff, regaling my class with stories of life in post-Mao China. Da Chen’s interest in people is evident in his engaging Colors of the Mountain. A tale of triumph against all odds, Da Chen’s memoir chronicles how he and his family survived China’s Cultural Revolution (1966-1976).

Despite the harshness of the times, Da Chen tells his story with uncommon grace and humor. I return to his work time and again, not just for preparation in teaching 20th-century China, but also for personal inspiration.

By Da Chen,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Colors of the Mountain as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Colors of the Mountain is a classic story of triumph over adversity, a memoir of a boyhood full of spunk, mischief, and love, and a welcome introduction to an amazing young writer.

Da Chen was born in 1962, in the Year of Great Starvation. Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution engulfed millions of Chinese citizens, and the Red Guard enforced Mao's brutal communist regime. Chen’s family belonged to the despised landlord class, and his father and grandfather were routinely beaten and sent to labor camps, the family of eight left without a breadwinner. Despite this background of poverty and danger, and Da…


Book cover of God's Chinese Son: The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of Hong Xiuquan

Suzanne Litrel Why did I love this book?

The late and highly regarded scholar Jonathon Spence, prolific author of ground-breaking texts, takes on one of nineteenth-century China’s strangest political mysteries.

In God’s Chinese Son, he asks: how did Hong Xiuquan, the so-called Chinese younger brother of Jesus Christ, manage to gain thousands of followers—and nearly topple Qing dynasty(1644-1912)? 

As an educator, I needed more than a pat answer regarding how the Taiping Rebellion endured for decades and upended Qing norms. Spence provides this depth.

Prior to reading this, I had no real concept of the disaster that was the Taiping Rebellion. Spence’s compelling and deeply researched tale of a failed scholar’s vision—and the disaster that followed—is a riveting ride through China’s traumatic nineteenth century, and a glimpse of what would come. 

By Jonathan D. Spence,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked God's Chinese Son as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Whether read for its powerful account of the largest uprising in human history, or for its foreshadowing of the terrible convulsions suffered by twentieth-century China, or for the narrative power of a great historian at his best, God's Chinese Son must be read. At the center of this history of China's Taiping rebellion (1845-64) stands Hong Xiuquan, a failed student of Confucian doctrine who ascends to heaven in a dream and meets his heavenly family: God, Mary, and his older brother, Jesus. He returns to earth charged to eradicate the "demon-devils," the alien Manchu rulers of China. His success carries…


Explore my book 😀

Jackie Tempo and the Emperor's Seal

By Suzanne Litrel,

Book cover of Jackie Tempo and the Emperor's Seal

What is my book about?

In the mansion she shares with her eccentric Aunt Isobel, Jackie Tempo mourns her parents—until she discovers a mysterious book. This magical text transports her back in time to Ming China (1368-1644), where she finds herself aboard a ship—and face-to-face with her father! The year is 1521, and Jackie’s parents are actually alive. Thus begins Jackie's adventure through time and space. Along the way, Jackie encounters a Buddhist monk, a strong-willed concubine, and a runaway girl who has been falsely accused of stealing the emperor's seal. 

They quickly discover that a darker force is at work here. It is up to Jackie and her allies to find a way home, and to prevent a serious disruption in the time-space continuum.

Book cover of Sources of Chinese Tradition: From Earliest Times to 1600
Book cover of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
Book cover of Colors of the Mountain

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Beth Dotson Brown Author Of Rooted in Sunrise

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Why am I passionate about this?

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