My new book, coming out from W. W. Norton & Company on Feb 4, 2025, is available for pre-order. Read more below.

Booklisti asked me to write a list of my favorite Eastern fantasy book series. I included books by Nahoko Uehashi, Fonda Lee, Ken Liu, and Lian Hearn. Here’s the link. They also created a listing for the Peasprout Chen books here.

Okay, that was a bit click-baitey. It wasn’t like a fight between beloved author Grace Lin and me, it was a warm, lively interview for Grace’s Kids Ask Authors Podcast. Read the transcript or subscribe to the podcast HERE.

I’ve been getting messages from readers asking about the status of PEASPROUT CHEN, book 3. In fact, it appears to be the top PEASPROUT CHEN related Google search. I fling myself at your skates in gratitude for your interest in my miserable and less than trash novels. Here’s an update.

I presented the Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction tonight in song as my alter ego, Emperor Stardust. Thank you, SFWA, for finally giving me an excuse to make a Duran Duran song. Watch HERE.

I got invited by Shepherd.com to curate a list of books for readers who felt Hermione Granger deserved her own series. The list includes some of my favorite books by Nnedi Okorafor, Adam Rex, Georgia Byng, Charles Portis, and Ted Naifeh. Full list HERE. And another list about unique Asian fantasy including books by Fonda Lee, Ken Liu, Nahoko Uehashi, Lian Hearn, and Shaun Tan. Full list HERE.

BTW, Shepherd is a new alternative to Goodreads that doesn’t rely on mob rule but instead invites authors to curate lists of recommended books.

Love,

Henry

Book Riot published a list of most popular children’s books by authors from various countries and wuhu!! PEASPROUT CHEN is representing Taiwan! I’m particularly pumped because Nnedi Okorafor was chosen to rep Nigeria with AKATA WARRIOR, one of my all-time faves! Full list HERE.

The Science Fiction/Fantasy Writers Association commissioned me to write this article about what I call “Diversity Plus”. In short, I think that discussions about diversity shouldn’t just be limited to the identities of the characters and creators. It should also embrace actual story forms and themes from diverse traditions. Read the article HERE.

MORE

Wuhu! The audio version of PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD, read by Nancy Wu, has been selected for the Audible Stories platform focusing on diverse voices. It’s free to listen to in its entirety through September 7, 2020!

I had a blast with this rip-roaring, off-the-rails interview in which I talk about PEASPROUT CHEN and get drawn as an irritable oracular monkey, while knocking back cup after cup of jasmine green tea. Hold onto something and click HERE.

Just in time for Pride Month, Welcoming Schools, a program of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, includes PEASPROUT CHEN in its list of Diverse LGBTQ Inclusive Middle Grade Books. View the whole list HERE! To learn more about Welcoming Schools, check THIS out.

Listen to a trio of very sharp middle school kids and me talk about PEASPROUT CHEN on the Book Club for Kids podcast, hosted by renowned public radio host Kitty Felde. Click HERE.

I’m the Special Guest Star on this week’s episode of “The Write Process,” UCLA Extension Writers’ Program’s cozy, crafty podcast. I go on for 37 minutes without saying “uhm” or “like” while talking about puzzle stories, worldbuilding, and PEASPROUT CHEN. Check it out here: SoundCloud or Google “write process Henry Lien”.

Romper includes PEASPROUT CHEN in its list of 20 family audiobooks for road trips. View the full list HERE.

The Association for Library Service to Children has included PEASPROUT CHEN in its Summer Reading List. View the full list HERE.

MG Book Village featured two articles that included me going blah, blah, blah about upper middle grade books and the experience of writing a sequel. Take a look HERE and HERE.

WFMU 91.1 will be hosting a reading of this prequel story to PEASPROUT CHEN on its Radiovert program, hosted by Nicole Imthurn, at 7 pm Eastern, July 3, 2019. Stream HERE.

My heart is filled with 10,000 strains of joy to announce that each lunar period, I shall gift priceless PEASPROUT CHEN treasures including signed books, audiobooks, and Nobody and the Fire-Chickens T-Shirts! Enter by subscribing to my newsletter HERE. More details below.

I was proud that Bookish invited me to take Gene Luen Yang‘s “Reading Without Walls” challenge, inviting people to read books outside of what they normally read. To read my recommendations, click HERE.

I really liked this craft-based keynote speech I gave for WriteOnCon about how diversity discussions can also include discussions of different forms of story, using PEASPROUT CHEN as an example. Read or listen HERE.

The Fascinating Podcast interviews me about the origins of PEASPROUT CHEN and I talk about everything from foot-binding to mean girls to girl power. Check it out HERE.

I’m very proud that just in time for the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, Book Riot included PEASPROUT CHEN in its list of 9 best LGBTQ middle grade novels. Check out the full list HERE.

The Cooperative Children’s Book Center has included PEASPROUT CHEN in its best-of-the-year list. View the full list HERE.

PEASPROUT CHEN makes A Mighty Girl’s epic summer reading list for tweens. View the full list HERE.

I’m particularly proud of this interview with the Books and Boba podcast, which is devoted to Asian and Asian-American books. I got to go into a lot of detail about PEASPROUT CHEN and other topics. Listen to the episode HERE.

Proud to have PEASPROUT CHEN included in this round-up. Check out the full list HERE.

Award-winning author Rachel Swirsky interviews me about PEASPROUT CHEN, my birds, art, vegan cooking, and other things I find totally boring and never, ever want to talk about. With pictures. Read it HERE.

“Three other sequels of note this spring join the current effervescence of non-European fantasy, a burgeoning that’s made me really aware of the thematic limitations of the traditional canon: Henry Lien’s Battle of Champions. . .” Read the full list HERE.

YouTuber Oscar the Gameboy covers the launch party for PEASPROUT CHEN: BATTLE OF CHAMPIONS. To watch, click HERE.

PEASPROUT CHEN is a finalist for the Norton Award, i.e., the Nebula Award for KidLit. To see all the finalists, click HERE.

I moonlight as an instructor at UCLA Extension, teaching law and middle-grade novel writing. UCLA’s Daily Bruin newspaper published an interview of me about the PEASPROUT CHEN series. Click
HERE.

Here is a fun interview of me by Christian A. Coleman in Lightspeed Magazine about PEASPROUT CHEN. Click
HERE.

Here’s a video of highlights from the launch of PEASPROUT CHEN: BATTLE OF CHAMPIONS, including my performance of the two new theme songs and the scene in which Peasprout’s battleband gets stuck with its tragically inauspicious name, “Nobody and the Fire-Chickens.” I put a tremendous amount of work, learning, and love into this and I would be honored if you would take a look. Click
HERE.

Recently, while writing at the Three Broomsticks, I received the most extraordinary letter from a stranger regarding PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD! MORE

St. Paul’s School’s alumni magazine published this intimate profile about how my years at boarding school influenced the PEASPROUT CHEN books. To read, click
HERE.

I talk about creating my own diverse, queer equivalent of Harry Potter or Star Wars that had inclusivity baked into it from the outset; writing a fantasy with no magic; the girlpower subtext of the PEASPROUT CHEN series; middle grade as a literature of brightness and hope; how being a lawyer and an art dealer informed my writing; and other things. To read, click
HERE.

MG Book Village just published this petition by new student Princess Wu Yinmei against Peasprout, as well as Yinmei’s new song about the Empress Dowager’s vicious tactics. Peasprout is undaunted. Read and listen HERE.

Kapow! Peasprout punches the sophomore slump right off the ice! PEASPROUT CHEN book 2 gets its first review, a starred review in Kirkus. “A riveting second act.” To read, click
HERE.

“This is a great book to listen to as a family; to laugh and gasp and splutter the “WHAT?!?” – Book Riot
Book Riot kindly included PEASPROUT CHEN in its list of top 25 family audiobooks. Read the full review
HERE.

My Dad (aka the Artist Formerly Known as Dad) and I are taking our father-son act on the road! We’ll be at the Wing Luke Museum in Seattle talking about how our experiences as immigrants influenced his photography and my writing. MORE

I’m pleased to be on this panel in Seattle with Curtis Chen, Ted Chiang, and Caroline M. Yoachim, moderated by Yang-Yang Wang. MORE

Wuhu!! Peasprout punches Booklist right in the ears! PEASPROUT CHEN makes the American Library Association Booklist’s Top 10 First Novels on Audio! MORE

MG Book Village just published this enraged open letter-orb from Peasprout Chen herself about the reveal of the new book covers supposedly featuring her and the new theme song for book 2. Poor Peasprout. To read the letter, click HERE.

Nerdcamp SoCal published a guest blog I wrote about why I write. The short answer is because imagination is stronger than reality. To read it, click HERE.

Peasprout’s pretty grouchy right now at taking silver, since she was Champion of Wu Liu for all of Shui Shan province five times before the age of ten, but I, for one, am pretty proud of this Parents’ Choice Foundation Silver Medal (alongside authors like Peter Brown and Grace Lin!). Read the full review
HERE.

I talk about the secret weapon that J.K. Rowling’s books, particularly Prisoner of Azkaban, imparted to me that helped me make PEASPROUT CHEN the most compelling mystery/puzzle story I could write. To read, click
HERE.

I talk about these and other things that went into the creation of PEASPROUT CHEN in this lovely, lively podcast with librarian Laura Given. Shouts out to favorite books by Armand Baltazar, Nnedi Okorafor, and Shaun Tan.
To listen, click
HERE.

“This fast-paced and immensely entertaining book is a delight to read and offers some delicious twists as a payoff.” MORE

Author Janie Chang interviewed me for her blog and asked me about all my most personal and juicilious secrets. MORE

“I confess I had fun imagining the elevator pitch for Henry Lien’s fantasy debut: “It’s Hermione Granger meets ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ meets the Ice Capades meets ‘Mean Girls.’” For all its disparate ingredients, though, PEASPROUT CHEN: FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD . . . speaks in a single, strong voice, thanks to its spirited heroine.” Read the whole thing here:
New York Times

In honor of Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, here’s a blog interview I did about Taiwanese food, Asian-American skaters, the hardest part of writing PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD, and lots more interesting stuff. Reading Asian America

“My ten year old loved this story; she could not put it down!” – Book Riot
“A thrilling, heartfelt story middle grade readers will high-kick for.” – Read Brightly

This is a true story about the most memorable meal I ever experienced, and a bottle of cognac I received that was worth a man’s life. Eating Authors Blog

Here’s a video of highlights from the launch of PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD including an interview with a young boy blogger who supports girl power. MORE

Here’s the super fun video of my session last week on Juliette Wade’s Dive Into Worldbuilding webcast in which we discuss juicy secrets about the worldbuilding in PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD! MORE

Queen of Broadway and General Goddess of the Known Universe Idina Menzel and I perform the theme song from PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD! MORE

I’m overjoyed to announce the launch event for my debut novel PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD on Saturday, April 7, 2018 at Children’s Book World in West Los Angeles. MORE

What do ouija boards, oracular monkeys, and vegan delights have in common? Find out by reading this boisterous interview I did with author Camille DeAngelis for our debut author’s group. I can’t mention its name, though. It’s a stealth ninja debut author’s group. MORE

Watch a 48 year-old man not cry as he opens the box containing the finished hardcover of his debut novel PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD. MORE

Teacher/podcast host/children’s lit paladin Colby Sharp featured me in his YouTube series One Question with Mr. Sharp. He asked me one innocent question that ended up being deeply confronting and interesting. MORE

In celebration of the lunar new year, Holt/Macmillan have given me permission to share the official theme song and campus map for PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD. MORE

Macmillan just posted a blog I wrote about the devastating injuries I suffered to my ego when I took kung fu and figure skating lessons as research to write PEASPROUT CHEN, FUTURE LEGEND OF SKATE AND SWORD. MORE

“Massively entertaining”
PEASPROUT CHEN’s first review is a starred review in Publishers Weekly. MORE

I’ve written a guest blog post as part of the YAReads Debut Authors’ Bash about PEASPROUT CHEN, quidditch, lightsabers, and feminist sports. MORE

My Clarion West classmate Alyc Helms conducted an interview with me about the Clarion West experience. MORE

The Weird Fiction show “The Outer Dark” has relaunched this rollicking and candid podcast interview with me from late December 2015. MORE

“The Ladies’ Aquatic Gardening Society” is currently a finalist for the Nebula Award. MORE

I talk about the world of Pearl in this interview for the “Dive Into Worldbuilding” series. MORE

Come hear me doing teenage mean-girl drag. MORE

I say a lot a things you’re not supposed to say in this interview. MORE

I’ve got a lot to say about my dolphin meme Twitter story and I say it in this interview. MORE

Another Pearl novelette is now available in Analog. MORE

“Pearl Rehabilitative Colony for Ungrateful Daughters” has been nominated for the Nebula. MORE

This is my blog and it is ready to launch soon. MORE