Updates on my publication date

I’ve been so focused on my July 29th publication date that I was completely blindsided when a friend informed me last week that his copy of Good Chinese Wife was waiting for him at a Barnes and Noble in Honolulu!

It had to have been a mistake, I thought. After all, my original publication date was July 1st, but my publisher moved it back to the 29th so they could maximize their pre-publication publicity. I figured Barnes and Noble hadn’t updated their files and had sent this friend an e-mail by mistake.

But I was wrong! The book was indeed in that Honolulu B&N! Here’s another photo my friend Jing sent.

If it reached Hawaii already, surely it must be somewhere on the mainland, too. I did a quick search on the B&N online store and found that it’s no longer available for pre-ordering. There’s a shopping cart attached to the paperback edition! (The Nook version won’t come out until July 29th).

Not only that! B&N’s review feature has been enabled for Good Chinese Wife. And the B&N online store now includes my first chapter!

So I did two things this weekend. One, I ordered a copy of my memoir on the B&N online store to see when it would arrive. The e-mail confirmation I received mentioned that the book will be shipped on July 7th! That’s tomorrow.

Second, I loaded my little kids into my station wagon this afternoon and drove off to our local Barnes and Noble. I needed to see in person if the book was there, too. Alas it wasn’t, and the customer service rep couldn’t tell me when it would reach the store. But he did explain that my publication date of July 29th is a “soft” date and that the book could arrive at any time before then or even on the publication date itself.

So if you’re interested in obtaining a copy before July 29th, check with your independent bookstores (Good Chinese Wife has a shopping cart and not a pre-order status on many indie bookstore sites, including Paddyfield.com in Hong Kong!) or Barnes and Noble.

I’m still going to have a fabulous book party in Chicago on July 29th, so check my events page for more information about that! We’ll have giveaways, wine, and sparkling water. Plus, it’s a gorgeous store, so I hope you’ll stop by if you’re in the area.