Publication Date: February 18, 2025
AS SEEN ON PEOPLE.COM
A Journey of Resilience, Reinvention, and Belonging—One Meal, One Story, One Connection at a Time.
Author Shari Leid—abandoned in a cardboard box with no identifying information in Seoul, South Korea, and adopted by Japanese American parents—embarks on a remarkable journey across the U.S. to challenge her father’s fears of being unwelcome because of their Asian faces.
In Table for 51, Shari meets strangers and reconnects with people from her own past, sharing a meal in every state. From bustling city cafés to peaceful countryside tables, each encounter reveals the power of human connection.
Through these fifty heartfelt conversations, Shari discovers the magic of belonging and the courage to embrace change, ultimately ending her turbulent twenty-six-year marriage.
At age 52, author Shari Leid set out to help fuel connections and community across the United States. Her method? Travel and meet 50 people while breaking bread.
Table for 51 is the culmination of that project, an opportunity to learn about the life stories of other people in the intimate setting of a shared meal.
Women from all across the country are represented in Shari’s conversations. Even as her 26-year marriage came to an end, Shari found solace in proving that her Asian features had no bearing on the willingness of strangers to meet with her.
Her approach involved reconnecting with women she knew professionally but had never met. She posted about the project on social media and then reached out to business owners in the remaining states.
The book serves as a travel digest/diary of each woman she met and the stories they shared. The end result is a powerful message of friendship and sisterhood.
Table for 51 delivers a tapestry of possibilities thanks to one woman’s efforts to reach out to others.
Shari Leid is a former litigator turned reinvention coach, author and speaker. She is the driving force behind An Imperfectly Perfect Life, LLC.
As a recognized friendship expert and national speaker, Shari’s influence extends well beyond her coaching sessions. She has been featured on major media outlets, including ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, and CTV, and was profiled on the TODAY show in April 2023. Her expertise has been shared in leading publications such as HuffPost, Real Simple, PureWow, AARP, Woman’s World, TIME, and Shondaland.
Shari hosts the podcast An Imperfectly Perfect Life – Life Unscripted, where she inspires listeners with candid conversations about navigating life’s ups and downs.
