Excerpt from China Dolls by Lisa See, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

When the performance ended, the dancer picked up a towel and wiped the sweat from his face. He loped down the stairs, dropped onto a folding chair next to a woman and two men, all of whom had their backs to us. I focused on the girls by the stage. A couple of them were attired in playsuits like Grace, but the rest wore street clothes. I didn't recognize a single girl. Not one of them was from Chinatown.

The air I sucked in felt clean and free.

That's when I saw her, one particular girl, who had a spot to herself.

Suddenly I wanted out of there, but Grace gripped my hand tightly and pulled me across the floor toward the creature, who was strikingly different from all the rest. Light seemed to glow out of her skin. Her black hair was highlighted by a pair of shockingly white gardenias pinned just above her left ear. Her eyes sparkled, and her lips formed a perfect bow. She wore tap pants and a pale pink blouse with puffed sleeves not all that different from Grace's, only hers had embroidery on the collar and cuffs. Her bare legs ended in ankle socks with delicate lace ruffles and basic black shoes with two-inch heels.

"Sit with me," she trilled when we reached her. "I don't know anyone either. I'm Ruby Tom."

"Helen." Grace pointed to me before putting her hand on her chest. "Grace."

Ruby, excited, continued, "Can you believe Eddie Wu?"

"Eddie Wu?" Grace echoed even as the three of us scrutinized each other to see where we fit in. Ruby and Grace looked poor in their homemade outfits; I was better- dressed than anyone in the room. Ruby's features were willow- delicate, Grace had perfect cheekbones, while my face was a little rounder and softer. Ruby sparkled; Grace could be summed up in four words— skinny legs, big bosom. Otherwise, we looked quite similar: petite, slim, with black curls falling over our shoulders, except that Ruby wore those gardenias in her hair, which made her look like a glamorous crane amidst a flock of chickens. We shifted slightly. We'd finished with our evaluations. No wind; no waves.

"The guy who was just dancing," Ruby picked up as though no time had passed. "Isn't Eddie amazing? He's a regular Fred Astaire." "But he's Chinese," Grace pointed out in a low voice.

"That's why they call him the Chinese Fred Astaire!" Ruby slapped her thigh. Then, "Are you two trying out to be chorus girls? I don't remember either of you from the auditions at Li Po or the Sky Room, though. But you know how it is. New girls are coming every day. Everyone wants a chance— if not here, then at one of the other clubs that are opening."

"Have the other clubs already hired dancers?" Grace asked.

"I didn't say that," Ruby answered. "They just didn't want me. A couple of other new girls are here today too. There might even be more by the end of the day or tomorrow."

"You seem to know a lot about it. Are you from here?" Grace asked.

"Hardly." Ruby tossed her hair. "I was born in Los Angeles. My parents owned a curio shop across from the Orpheum Theater— a hot place for vaudeville when I was a tot. I used to dance and sing outside our store— just for kicks. People would stop, and my brothers would circulate through the crowd with hats, asking for change. We had a wild time!"

Ruby glanced at me. Well? But I couldn't fathom what I was supposed to say to someone like her. Among other things, she was what you'd have to call cheung hay, a blabbermouth. I elected to keep my thoughts to myself.

"Later we beat it to Terminal Island in Long Beach," Ruby went on, "because my pop wanted to return to fishing. My mom is a teacher. She said she could go wherever children need her, but my parents still weren't happy. They decided we should move to Hawaii."

Excerpted from China Dolls by Lisa See. Copyright © 2014 by Lisa See. Excerpted by permission of Random House. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.