* First American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature (1938)
* Her novel "The Good Earth" (1931) won the Pulitzer Prize and sold more than 2 million copies in its first year
* Wrote more than 100 books and short stories, mainly about China and Chinese-American characters
* Founded Welcome House, an adoption agency for Asian children
* Advocate for women's rights and racial equality
* Served as vice-president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)