Princeton (USA), 1968 - San José (USA), 2004

The daughter of two emigrated university professors from China, Iris Chang grew up in Champaign, Illinois (USA). After graduating, he wrote for the New York Times and the Chicago Tribune. He married Bretton Lee Douglas, with whom he had his son Christopher, and lived in San José (California), where he suffered a deep depression that led to suicide. In his brief literary career, Chang left behind three interesting books documenting the experiences of Asian or Chinese Americans who have influenced history.

In his first book, Thread of the Silkworm (1995), Chang recounts the life of Chinese professor Tsien Hsue-shen during the Red Threat in the 1950s. Tsien was one of the founders of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and For many years, he helped the United States Army interrogate scientists from Nazi Germany, but was suddenly accused of being a spy and a member of the American Communist Party, and he was placed under house arrest from 1950 to 1955. Upon returning to China in September 1955, Tsien developed the Dongfeng Missile Program, and later the Silkworm Missile, which would be used by the Iraqi military during its war against Iran and also, ironically, against the US-led coalitions during the First and Second War. of the Gulf.