 Having made contact with the family, she left Swarthmore College before graduating, and in 1920, set out for China.She ended up living for 12 years in the Lin household as a "daughter of affection" and developed this experience into her acclaimed memoir "House of Exile", which was published in 1933.This gave readers an insiders look at Chinese culture and customs in a time of change following the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty.