Maxine Hong Kingston is a renowned American novelist, acclaimed for her contribution to Chinese American literature and the feminist movement. She was born as Maxine Ting Ting Hong on October 27, 1940. Kingston is a Professor Emerita at the University of California, Berkeley, where she graduated with a BA in English in 1962.

Kingston's works often explore the experiences of Chinese Americans, with a blend of fiction and non-fiction. Her notable works include The Woman Warrior, a memoir that discusses gender and ethnicity, and China Men, which won the National Book Award for Nonfiction in 1981.

Despite her accolades, Kingston has faced criticism for allegedly reinforcing racist stereotypes in her work and for fictionalizing traditional Chinese stories to appeal to Western audiences. She has also been critiqued by female Asian scholars for her portrayal of Asian American female oppression.