Gretchen Dykstra, a writer-in-residence at the New York Public Library and author of two previous books, will read from Echoes from Wuhan, her recently released memoir of living and teaching in China from 1979-1981.

Echoes from Wuhan tells the dramatic, fast-paced story of a naïve and adventuresome young American woman and how she navigated — well and not so well — the complexities of cross- cultural confusions and clashes in China long ago. A prisoner of privilege and watched by Party officials, Gretchen Dykstra stayed in Wuhan for two years (1979-1981) and returned to a career in the civic affairs of New York City. She maintained enduring friendships with some of her students and, through those bonds, reveals aspects of an ancient culture that shaped modern China."