Naperville native publishes debut novel, hosts talk at Anderson's Bookshop

Chicago Tribune

7 days ago

Claire Jia, 31, thought she would become the U.S. ambassador to China when she grew up.
'Every single activity I did, I did towards that end,' the Naperville native said, taking her studies in Chinese language seriously and pursuing activities like Model United Nations at Naperville Central High School. Plus, it seemed like a practical dream and it was one that her mom said she encouraged.
'I wanted to engage with my Chinese culture from this political standpoint. And it wasn't until later that I decided I actually wanted to unpack it from an artistic standpoint,' Jia said.
Even when she was working on her political science thesis in college, she realized that she did not want to write another academic paper. So, she took her thesis – which explored how propaganda influences the romantic and intimate lives of people in Beijing – and turned it into a novel.
Now, nearly a decade later, that novel is finally published.
Jia's debut book, called 'Wanting,' follows the story of two estranged best friends who reunite in Beijing after 12 years apart. One friend, Ye Lian, leads a content, stable life in Beijing while the other friend, Luo Wenyu, leads a much more lavish lifestyle as an influencer in San Francisco with an American fiance who is a millionaire.
The novel, as Jia describes it, is a story of comparison – a story exploring the 'what ifs' of life and how much one person is allowed to want or settle for.
The book has been well-received. Oprah Daily included 'Wanting' in its list of 'The 25 Most Anticipated Books of 2025.' The magazine Harper's Bazaar listed the book as a top read for the summer and The New York Times gave 'Wanting' an overall positive review.
Last Saturday, Jia had the opportunity to talk about her book at Anderson's Bookshop in downtown Naperville – a full-circle moment for the 31-year-old who got to see some of her favorite authors speak at the bookstore when she was younger.
'My mom pulled out a photo … where me and my sister, we went to go see my favorite author back then – and maybe just of all time – Kenneth Oppel,' Jia said. 'I just remember going to his event at Anderson's and just sobbing in the back.'
Now, Jia got to be the one speaking in a room filled with dozens of people, including old teachers and friends from high school. She even got to speak alongside her longtime friend Wendy Wei, who she started a National History Club chapter with at Naperville Central.
'I never doubted that she could write a novel,' Wei said. 'In her acknowledgements, she has this part where she says, like, 'I never thought I could write a novel. I thought writing was for other people,' but throughout our entire friendship, she was always writing.'
That included sharing notes and passing around a shared journal during class throughout middle and high school, Wei recalled.
Jia also remembered loving to write when she was younger, but she never saw creative writing as a dream to pursue.
'I was very practical-minded as a kid, and my parents told me that I couldn't make money from writing, so I should pursue something else,' Jia said. 'And, well, first of all, they were right. And secondly, I agreed with them.'
But after being surrounded by film students while studying abroad in Paris and watching her younger sister apply to art school, Jia questioned why she couldn't have that creative life for herself and instead had to read 'boring political theory.' That's when she realized she could, in fact, chase her artistic dreams.
After graduating college, Jia moved to Los Angeles where she pursued a career as a screenwriter. As for her political science thesis-turned-novel, Jia initially viewed it as nothing more than a 'great creative endeavor.' But that would all change when a New York Times Modern Love essay she wrote caught the eye of a literary agent.
'I sent her my novel, and she really liked it, and it was a short novel at the time,' Jia recalled. 'And she was like, 'This is too short to sell, but can we work together on expanding it? And I was like, 'Yeah, sure, how hard could that be?' And that was 2016.'
While Naperville specifically does not make an appearance in her novel, she said that the city and Illinois suburbs have a strong influence on her writing in general. The friendship between the two main characters in the book also mirrors aspects of her friendship with Wei in high school.
'I felt like we were both very smart and very like political minded. We both did Model U.N., we both did human rights club, and we founded the History Club chapter together. And so I always felt competitive with her and wanting to do as well, if not better,' Jia said.
While Jia does not feel this sense of competitiveness anymore, she enjoyed exploring these emotions in her book.
'It's funny, because in adult life, we both ended up studying political science in college, but then our lives kind of diverged. She's remained more on the political side of things, but at the same time, she's also a writer,' Jia said. 'It's like, in a way, we have come back together, and we are doing similar things again, even though it's in different fields.'
For Wei, reading Jia's novel was special because it gave her the opportunity to read from the perspectives of contemporary Chinese people in a way that was accessible. But most importantly, it was special for her to see her friend finally come out with her book.
'I've read so much of her personal letters to me written as herself, but it was really awesome to see her as a fiction writer and take on the challenge of writing not as herself, but as a character she developed over all these years,' Wei said.