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unphilosophize's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I really wanted to like this book more than I did
The story was really compelling, but I didn’t like how it jumped around and how frequently the narration style changed without any real reason
The story was really compelling, but I didn’t like how it jumped around and how frequently the narration style changed without any real reason
allysonwbrunette's review
3.0
I don't know if I'm just accidentally selecting all books that are really sad, or if this is a commonality in this vein of literature. Either way, this book, while well-written, bummed me out. I listened to this book in audiobook format, and I think I would have had an easier time following the complex family tree and switching back and forth from different generations' perspectives in a physical copy. The story follows the Wong family's move from China to Vancouver, British Columbia and their rise to power and wealth within their community. This does not come without hardship, and the story emphasizes the difficulties that women face within this culture - with an expectation of arranged marriages, meeting the cultural expectations of being a good wife / mother / daughter-in-law, and the many, many secrets that the family has held over generations. The decisions and actions of grandparents and parents would continue to rear their ugly heads in future generations and inevitably, stand in the way of the happiness of their extended family. The overarching theme of this story is just sadness - sadness in their circumstances, in their families, and in their individual identities.
voara's review
4.0
Read this for class. I arrived in Vancouver a month ago and still feel completely new to this place and its culture and history. I saw and felt so much through this book—I think my future experiences of Vancouver's Chinatown will be directly informed by this novel lol. It's hard for me to say but as a standalone story it might not be all that interesting if you aren't reading with intention or interest in gaining insight into Chinese Canadian history or Asian Canadian diaspora. But sometimes a work is compelling for its contextual significance: this is the first Chinese Canadian novel to be published by mainstream (English) press—the first time Chinese Canadian history was made available in the novel format. Sky Lee takes on a huge responsibility in telling this story and she is clearly very well informed about the history: the railway, the head tax, the exclusion act, the Janet Smith case, the Chinese Canadians' relation to Indigenous people—the novel is very rich in historical events. As an Asian migrant myself this book felt important to me and I felt obliged to absorb all that it had to offer :]
the8th's review
4.0
Good book, beautiful and intriguing. Four generations of Chinese-Canadian women, the culture, the lives and the men, the prejudice, and their relationships to each other. Slightly confusing at points, but there is a nice little graph at the beginning to help you figure out who is who. Sky Lee was compared to Marquez when this was first published. I can definitely see the influence.
tomikorobson's review
4.0
I love this book so much except every ding, when, inch from eels disjointed to me.
kgentry4's review
3.0
"GO DIE!"... funniest part of the book. Seriously though I enjoyed the storyline of this one, but it jumped time periods way too much. I almost felt seasick from it, plus it was so hard to keep things straight. This completely took away from the book for me.
mizpurplest's review
4.0
An excellent, enticing subtly feminist novel with mystery and intrigue and complex character development. I really enjoyed it.
meganac's review
1.0
Maybe it was because I was listening to this on audio, but I found it difficult to keep all the characters straight. Half the time I didn't know what was going on and who was who. I also wasn't impressed with the way the women were portrayed...another reviewer said "the young were weak and the old were nasty", and I'd have to agree.