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ravenofoctober's review against another edition
3.0
To start: I've never read the source material, so I will not be making comparisons to that. It took me a long time to get into this book, and it never really gripped me enough that I couldn't put it down for a few days. It was like a soap opera. And while I appreciate that it's nowhere near as long as the original, I think it could have been trimmed down further.
HOWEVER, I really liked all the different women, and I was so glad Daiyu ended up being alive at the end (I hoped she would). I felt most sorry for Xifeng, who seemed to just be treated poorly by everyone despite all she did for the household. Watching her slow decline at the end, culminating in her dying alone, was truly tragic.
I did think the strength of this book was the way it depicts the modern concept of internalized misogyny in a historical context. All the women show varying levels of adaptation or rebellion in the oppressive society they're in--and the men even show different degrees of this as well; it's more pronounced in the women because the three main point of view characters are women. While on the one hand I wish they would have supported each other, it's understandable in the setting they're in. They're all vying for the most power a woman can have, and they judge each other harshly for missteps or rebellions of which they don't approve, while at the same time making their own missteps and rebellions. Chen certainly nailed all of these complexities well. I think the plot was just a little too slow-moving for me.
HOWEVER, I really liked all the different women, and I was so glad Daiyu ended up being alive at the end (I hoped she would). I felt most sorry for Xifeng, who seemed to just be treated poorly by everyone despite all she did for the household. Watching her slow decline at the end, culminating in her dying alone, was truly tragic.
I did think the strength of this book was the way it depicts the modern concept of internalized misogyny in a historical context. All the women show varying levels of adaptation or rebellion in the oppressive society they're in--and the men even show different degrees of this as well; it's more pronounced in the women because the three main point of view characters are women. While on the one hand I wish they would have supported each other, it's understandable in the setting they're in. They're all vying for the most power a woman can have, and they judge each other harshly for missteps or rebellions of which they don't approve, while at the same time making their own missteps and rebellions. Chen certainly nailed all of these complexities well. I think the plot was just a little too slow-moving for me.
martialalex's review against another edition
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
nanceplants's review against another edition
3.0
Fun read, finished in one sitting. IMO, lacked depth, but has inspired me to maybe read the original someday.
parnassusreads's review against another edition
4.0
Pauline Chen’s new novel, The Red Chamber, is actually a retelling of a classic Chinese novel, The Dream of the Red Chamber. Chen’s version is severely truncated; the original novel is currently sold by Penguin in three volumes and was never finished. Chen freely admits she has taken many liberties with the story in order to better introduce it to Western audiences, she claims. I can in no way compare the two, since I had not even heard of the original before reading Chen’s book, so I will take The Red Chamber as a unique work of fiction.
The Red Chamber is set in 18th c. China and details the lives of the Jia family. The Jias are wealthy and have long and good connections to the imperial palace through the family patriarch, Jia Zheng; however, it is Lady Jia who truly rules the household. When Daiyu’s mother dies, her father sends her to stay with her maternal grandmother at the Jia family palace. There Daiyu meets three individuals who will leave indelible marks on her life: Xue Baochi, daughter of the widowed sister-in-law of Jia Zheng, Wang Xifeng, wife of Jia Lian, and Jia Baoyu, Zheng’s son and Lady Jia’s favorite (there is a helpful family tree at the beginning of the novel). The novel details the intimate family bonds and sometimes chains that bind each character, except for Daiyu, perhaps. It is grand and intimate at the same time; family drama set against the back drop of imperial strife.
Chen’s narrative is told through mainly the three females of the novel, with occasional forays into Zheng’s or Baoyu’s perspective. Each of the women is unique as are their voices. Xifeng is the under-appreciated house-hold manager, Baochi is the seemingly cold but dutiful daughter, and Daiyu is the “gauche” newcomer, daughter of a mother who threw away everything and defied Lady Jia to marry for love. Lady Jia never forgave her, even in death and her wrath has carried over to Daiyu. Three events set the course for the fate of the Jia family: the cover up of a murder, illicit love (on multiple fronts), and the fall of an Emperor. How will Daiyu survive in the grand city of Bejing amid all of the family politics and sweeping change?
Many have compared this to Artur Goldstein’s Memoirs of a Geisha, but I was constantly reminded of Raise the Red Lantern, the film by Zhang Yimou. I really, really enjoyed this novel. It immediately draws the reader in and through Chen’s gift for narrative, we begin to understand what drives each of the three women and who they must be in a tight-knit family irrevocably bound together. I wanted more after finishing this, and perhaps that was Chen’s intent: give Western readers a taste of a massive and loved Chinese classic so they’ll go in search of the original. While I’m not rushing out to the bookstore to find it, I did add it to my never-ending wishlist. Final verdict: highly recommended for those who love to be swept away by historical and intimate family portraits.
The Red Chamber is set in 18th c. China and details the lives of the Jia family. The Jias are wealthy and have long and good connections to the imperial palace through the family patriarch, Jia Zheng; however, it is Lady Jia who truly rules the household. When Daiyu’s mother dies, her father sends her to stay with her maternal grandmother at the Jia family palace. There Daiyu meets three individuals who will leave indelible marks on her life: Xue Baochi, daughter of the widowed sister-in-law of Jia Zheng, Wang Xifeng, wife of Jia Lian, and Jia Baoyu, Zheng’s son and Lady Jia’s favorite (there is a helpful family tree at the beginning of the novel). The novel details the intimate family bonds and sometimes chains that bind each character, except for Daiyu, perhaps. It is grand and intimate at the same time; family drama set against the back drop of imperial strife.
Chen’s narrative is told through mainly the three females of the novel, with occasional forays into Zheng’s or Baoyu’s perspective. Each of the women is unique as are their voices. Xifeng is the under-appreciated house-hold manager, Baochi is the seemingly cold but dutiful daughter, and Daiyu is the “gauche” newcomer, daughter of a mother who threw away everything and defied Lady Jia to marry for love. Lady Jia never forgave her, even in death and her wrath has carried over to Daiyu. Three events set the course for the fate of the Jia family: the cover up of a murder, illicit love (on multiple fronts), and the fall of an Emperor. How will Daiyu survive in the grand city of Bejing amid all of the family politics and sweeping change?
Many have compared this to Artur Goldstein’s Memoirs of a Geisha, but I was constantly reminded of Raise the Red Lantern, the film by Zhang Yimou. I really, really enjoyed this novel. It immediately draws the reader in and through Chen’s gift for narrative, we begin to understand what drives each of the three women and who they must be in a tight-knit family irrevocably bound together. I wanted more after finishing this, and perhaps that was Chen’s intent: give Western readers a taste of a massive and loved Chinese classic so they’ll go in search of the original. While I’m not rushing out to the bookstore to find it, I did add it to my never-ending wishlist. Final verdict: highly recommended for those who love to be swept away by historical and intimate family portraits.
kedawen's review against another edition
4.0
This book was very intense, especially in the last half as all the action gets going. The first half was a little slow, but it was good to get acquainted with all the characters. I can see myself reading this again.
rlbasley's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely loved this book! My biggest thrill as an avid reader is to find a book that hooks me within the first page and has me completely entranced to the last. This book certainly delivered! The characters are so detailed that I could anticipate at times how they would react to a situation before I read on to see what it would be. It is ironic to me that the family dynamics in this Chinese family is not very different from the German descendant American family I grew up in. I could replace my own family members with characters from this book. It's surprisingly relatable across cultural boundaries. I would gladly read more of this author's work! In fact I've run out of Chinese American Authors to read
bibliostorian's review against another edition
DNF because the audio narration is unbearable. I may come back to this in another format.
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