The Leftover Woman

Discuss this novel’s depiction of cross-cultural adoption. What broader argument does it make about the experiences of Chinese babies in white households? Does the author support this practice, take issue with it, or land somewhere in the middle?

Choose another novel that discusses cross-cultural adoption such as Celeste Ng’s Little Fires Everywhere. Do the two novels examine adoption through the same lens? What characteristics do they share, and where do they deviate?

Research China’s one-child policy. Does this novel accurately depict the way that it impacted women and young girls? How does Kwok’s engagement with this fraught issue speak to the lived experiences of women in China?