Dori Jones Yang is a writer who aims to build bridges between cultures. Author of a wide variety of books for different audiences, she loves to explore different countries, explain complex issues in understandable language, and make history come alive. Many of her books relate to China, one of her passions. Her newest book, When the Red Gates Opened: A Memoir of China's Reawakening, relates her personal experiences as a young foreign correspondent covering China during its pivotal period of opening, from 1982 to 1990. Publication date: September 22, 2020. For The Forbidden Temptation of Baseball, Dori researched the 1870s Chinese Educational Mission to the United States. Fascinated by the image of Chinese boys with Manchu-required queues playing baseball in small New England towns, she wrote this novel to help American kids understand what it's like for foreigners to adapt to life in our country. Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time tells the remarkable tale of how Starbucks grew from a tiny coffee shop in Seattle to a worldwide phenomenon. Co-authored with Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, it is accessible and engaging for both business experts and general readers. The Secret Voice of Gina Zhang, an award-winning book for readers age 10 and up, tells of a girl who moved from China to Seattle and lost her voice. The book's message is about what a joy it can be to reach out to classmates who have trouble speaking English. Daughter of Xanadu, published by Random House/Delacorte Press in 2011, is a historical novel about a daring 16-year-old named Emmajin, imaginary granddaughter of Khubilai Khan. Emmajin wants to join the Mongol Army and become a legend on the battlefield; her plans get complicated when she meets a charming foreigner from a distant land - named Marco Polo. Son of Venice, A Story of Marco Polo, is the sequel to Daughter of Xanadu, and takes up the story of Emmajin and Marco as they travel west along the Silk Road. They face battles, intrigue, betrayal and challenges to their unconventional love. For Warm Cup of Wisdom, Inspirational Insights on Relationships and Life, she interviewed nine older women and asked twenty questions about such topics as wisdom, resilience, forgiveness, friendship, loss, and making a difference. Born in Youngstown, Ohio, and educated in history at Princeton and in international relations at Johns Hopkins, Dori worked many years as a journalist for Business Week and U.S. News & World Report. She speaks Mandarin Chinese and has traveled widely in Asia.
