“Some people say fiction is all a lie. To me, fiction is one of the best ways we can learn truth.” In this Unban Coolies interview, Amy Tan talks about the importance of observation in her writing, identity and biodiversity, and how her interest in bird conversation inspired her new book, The Backyard Bird Chronicles (Knopf, 2024), which is featured in “The Written Image” in the March/April issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.