Reviews

"To tell a story is to plant a seed and let it grow." I cried and cried until I couldn't cry anymore and I couldn't put it down. So many moments are captured in this beautifully interwoven story that just shatter your heart into pieces. Every moment is just a gut punch, from the outbreak of war to traveling across borders and cities and countries trying to make a home, to meeting and losing people, to the stories they tell each other to try their hardest to heal. You felt like a part of the Dao family, following them on their journeys and reading their triumphs and challenges.

We read as Meilin loses all that she knows, tries to protect herself and her son, and grapples with the war around her that is slowly changing China. We read as Renshu grows from an adventurous toddler to a guarded father and husband struggling with his past. We read as Lily tries to find her own way in the world, burdened by her foggy past and uncertain future. And every step of the way, we are there with them, mourning for what was lost and hoping for the future. I was rooting for each of them as hard as I could.

This is a book about healing and rebirth, about that sought-after 'Peach Blossom Spring.' Wounds damage and scars remain, and we pretend we never knew they were there or how they got there. We try to heal and fail but eventually (hopefully), we find that fabled peach blossom spring. The themes of this novel are so carefully crafted; motherhood, fatherhood, and family, the stories, the scroll, the orchard. Every time that scroll was mentioned, I teared up. The stories that Meilin would tell to teach Renshu a lesson or give him courage or make him smile while times were hard were all beautifully used. The characters aren't perfect, they annoy, aggravate, and upset, and yet you understand their pain because you were there with them. Every one of them feels real and imagined.

Traveling through China with mother and son as they tried to find a place in their war-torn land was an amazing journey. It was tense and you felt the fear and danger, the desperation to survive and stay together. The frustration and harrowing fear I felt for them as they struggled made my stomach twist. The insight into Chinese culture, the languages, the food, the politics, and the diaspora helped me learn a lot. Wonderfully written, with resonant themes and a well-sculpted narrative, this has become one of my favorite reads of the year.