The Phoenix Pencil Company: a novel
(Book)
Author:
Published:
New York, NY : William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2025].
Format:
Book
Edition:
First edition.
Physical Desc:
362 pages ; 24 cm
Status:
12 copies, 1 person is on the wait list.
1 copy on order.
1 copy on order.
Description
"Monica Tsai spends most days on her computer, journaling the details of her ordinary life and coding for a program that seeks to connect strangers online. A self-proclaimed recluse, she's always struggled to make friends and, as a college freshman, finds herself escaping into a digital world, counting the days until she can return home to her beloved grandparents. They are now in their nineties, and Monica worries about them constantly--especially her grandmother, Yun, who survived two wars in China before coming to the States, and whose memory has begun to fade. Though Yun rarely speaks of her past, Monica is determined to find the long-lost cousin she was separated from years ago. One day, the very program Monica is helping to build connects her to a young woman, whose gift of a single pencil holds a surprising clue. Monica's discovery of a hidden family history is exquisitely braided with Yun's own memories as she writes of her years in Shanghai, working at the Phoenix Pencil Company. As WWII rages outside their door, Yun and her cousin, Meng, learn of a special power the women in their family possess: the ability to Reforge a pencil's words. But when the government uncovers their secret, they are forced into a life of espionage, betraying other people's stories to survive. Combining the cross-generational family saga and epistolary form of A Tale for the Time Being with the uplifting, emotional magic of The Midnight Library, Allison King's stunning debut novel asks: who owns and inherits our stories? The answers and secrets that surface on the page may have the unerasable power to reconnect a family and restore a legacy."--
Copies
Location
Call Number
Status
East Lyme Public New Fiction
King, Allison (Phoenix)
Due Aug 21, 2025
Guilford New Adult Fiction
FIC KING
Due Aug 14, 2025
Hamden/Miller New Adult Fiction
FIC/KING
Due Aug 18, 2025
Madison/Scranton Adult Fiction - New
F KING
Due Aug 19, 2025
North Branford/Smith Adult Fiction - New
New Fiction King
In Transit
North Haven Adult New Fiction
Fiction King, Allison
In Process
Old Lyme New A Fiction - New
FIC KING
Due Aug 9, 2025
Old Saybrook/Acton Adult Fiction
NEW F KING
On Shelf
Orange/Case Adult Fiction Book
New Fiction King
Due Aug 12, 2025
Stony Creek/Willoughby Wallace New Adult Fiction
FIC KIN
Due Aug 25, 2025
Wallingford NEW Adult Fiction
KING
In Transit
Woodbridge New Adult Fiction
FIC KING
Due Aug 20, 2025
Location
Call Number
Status
Meriden Public Library On Order
ON ORDER
On Order
Subjects
LC Subjects
Chinese Americans -- Fiction.
Cousins -- Fiction.
Espionage -- Fiction.
Family secrets -- Fiction.
Grandparent and child -- Fiction.
Intergenerational relations -- Fiction.
Letter writing -- Fiction.
Memory -- Fiction.
Space and time -- Fiction.
Women computer programmers -- Fiction.
World War, 1939-1945 -- China.
Cousins -- Fiction.
Espionage -- Fiction.
Family secrets -- Fiction.
Grandparent and child -- Fiction.
Intergenerational relations -- Fiction.
Letter writing -- Fiction.
Memory -- Fiction.
Space and time -- Fiction.
Women computer programmers -- Fiction.
World War, 1939-1945 -- China.
More Details
Language:
English
ISBN:
9780063446236, 0063446235
Notes
Description
"Monica Tsai spends most days on her computer, journaling the details of her ordinary life and coding for a program that seeks to connect strangers online. A self-proclaimed recluse, she's always struggled to make friends and, as a college freshman, finds herself escaping into a digital world, counting the days until she can return home to her beloved grandparents. They are now in their nineties, and Monica worries about them constantly--especially her grandmother, Yun, who survived two wars in China before coming to the States, and whose memory has begun to fade. Though Yun rarely speaks of her past, Monica is determined to find the long-lost cousin she was separated from years ago. One day, the very program Monica is helping to build connects her to a young woman, whose gift of a single pencil holds a surprising clue. Monica's discovery of a hidden family history is exquisitely braided with Yun's own memories as she writes of her years in Shanghai, working at the Phoenix Pencil Company. As WWII rages outside their door, Yun and her cousin, Meng, learn of a special power the women in their family possess: the ability to Reforge a pencil's words. But when the government uncovers their secret, they are forced into a life of espionage, betraying other people's stories to survive. Combining the cross-generational family saga and epistolary form of A Tale for the Time Being with the uplifting, emotional magic of The Midnight Library, Allison King's stunning debut novel asks: who owns and inherits our stories? The answers and secrets that surface on the page may have the unerasable power to reconnect a family and restore a legacy."--,Provided by publisher.
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Citations
APA Citation (style guide)
King, A. (2025). The Phoenix Pencil Company: a novel. First edition. William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)King, Allison. 2025. The Phoenix Pencil Company: A Novel. William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)King, Allison, The Phoenix Pencil Company: A Novel. William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2025.
MLA Citation (style guide)King, Allison. The Phoenix Pencil Company: A Novel. First edition. William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2025.
Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.
Staff View
Grouped Work ID:
1c7a26d5-540f-9d8f-08fc-09ee6d5886f6
Record Information
| Last Sierra Extract Time | Aug 07, 2025 02:09:09 PM |
|---|---|
| Last File Modification Time | Aug 07, 2025 02:09:16 PM |
| Last Grouped Work Modification Time | Aug 07, 2025 10:18:18 PM |
MARC Record
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| 650 | 0 | |a Letter writing |v Fiction. | |
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