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purplemuskogee's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Stunning book.
"Boyang thought that grief would make people less commonplace. The waiting room at the crematory, however, did not differentiate itself from elsewhere: the eagerness to be served first and the suspicion that others had snatched a better deal were reminiscent of the marketplace or stock exchange".
It follows childhood friends Moran, Boyang and Ruyu - and Shaoai, who is the slightly older rebellious girl whose family accepted to host and foster Ruyu, an orphan who was previously raised by the strict and religious "grandaunts" who found her on their doorstep one winter. We alternate between their childhood in Beijing and their adulthood, Boyang very successful and still in Beijing, Ruyu and Moran both in the US but not in contact and living separate lives. Shaoai has just died after 20 years in a coma, having been poisoned when she was younger. Whether it was an accident, a suicide or a murder is unclear - for most of the book - as we follow her former friends who are all wondering what happened exactly.
"Even the most innocent person, when cornered, is capable of a heartless crime".
Plot-wise it is slow and at times weak - but in terms of character study... this was an incredible novel, with characters all interesting and mysterious and really wonderful to read about. I regretted that once they are adults, Moran and Ruyu become very similar, at times it made it difficult to follow - although Ruyu's mystery existed already in her childhood, a little girl raised by two austere women who taught her never to show emotion, while Moran's cool demeanour as an adult seems acquired. Shaoai exists mostly as a memory - and in a few chapters as a rebellious student in China, uncertain of her fate as she awaits expulsion from her university following a protest.
"Certain things come unannounced, like crickets, like the darkness of the season: by the time one notices them, one has already fallen victim to their wicked charm".
The writing really was wonderful - smooth, clean, poetic but without the pathos. It was slow and beautifully written, and such a surprise of a book. Really, really recommend this one.
"Boyang thought that grief would make people less commonplace. The waiting room at the crematory, however, did not differentiate itself from elsewhere: the eagerness to be served first and the suspicion that others had snatched a better deal were reminiscent of the marketplace or stock exchange".
It follows childhood friends Moran, Boyang and Ruyu - and Shaoai, who is the slightly older rebellious girl whose family accepted to host and foster Ruyu, an orphan who was previously raised by the strict and religious "grandaunts" who found her on their doorstep one winter. We alternate between their childhood in Beijing and their adulthood, Boyang very successful and still in Beijing, Ruyu and Moran both in the US but not in contact and living separate lives. Shaoai has just died after 20 years in a coma, having been poisoned when she was younger. Whether it was an accident, a suicide or a murder is unclear - for most of the book - as we follow her former friends who are all wondering what happened exactly.
"Even the most innocent person, when cornered, is capable of a heartless crime".
Plot-wise it is slow and at times weak - but in terms of character study... this was an incredible novel, with characters all interesting and mysterious and really wonderful to read about. I regretted that once they are adults, Moran and Ruyu become very similar, at times it made it difficult to follow - although Ruyu's mystery existed already in her childhood, a little girl raised by two austere women who taught her never to show emotion, while Moran's cool demeanour as an adult seems acquired. Shaoai exists mostly as a memory - and in a few chapters as a rebellious student in China, uncertain of her fate as she awaits expulsion from her university following a protest.
"Certain things come unannounced, like crickets, like the darkness of the season: by the time one notices them, one has already fallen victim to their wicked charm".
The writing really was wonderful - smooth, clean, poetic but without the pathos. It was slow and beautifully written, and such a surprise of a book. Really, really recommend this one.
jkmk's review against another edition
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I wish the book would have been more satisfying and not so anticlimactic in the end.
booksbecreads's review against another edition
3.0
"A man is not like a cat that you can leave to its own entertainment "
ciska's review against another edition
4.0
*Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book on Netgalley from the publisher in return for an honest review*
Author
Yiyun Li grew up in Beijing, China and moved to the United States in 1996. She received an MFA from Iowa Writers' Workshop and an MFA in creative nonfiction writing from the University of Iowa. She was recently selected as one of Granta's 21 Best of Young American Novelists. She lives in Oakland, California with her husband and their two sons, and teaches at University of California, Davis.
Review
If you follow me for a while you know I do not often read books that are set in the East. I am not sure why but they hardly ever catch my attention. The title of this one caught my eye and I could not forget about seeing this one. I became curious about the accident and what exactly happened.
I started the book late one night planning just to read a few pages but that did not really work out well. I was pulled in and could not stop. The atmosphere is great and the writing is very nice. There is one problem with this book and though it did not disturb me as I got the feeling it was done on purpose I can imagine people will not like it. It was not easy to connect to the characters.
I liked the teenager Moran but did not understand the adult Moran. Ruyu is easy to follow and understand but not a very likeable person. Boyang is not really in the picture in the teenager years though he plays a critical part but is more important as an adult. Still I felt I missed crucial parts of the story to understand them and those parts did not come till the end of the book when it finally fell into place.
Author
Yiyun Li grew up in Beijing, China and moved to the United States in 1996. She received an MFA from Iowa Writers' Workshop and an MFA in creative nonfiction writing from the University of Iowa. She was recently selected as one of Granta's 21 Best of Young American Novelists. She lives in Oakland, California with her husband and their two sons, and teaches at University of California, Davis.
Review
If you follow me for a while you know I do not often read books that are set in the East. I am not sure why but they hardly ever catch my attention. The title of this one caught my eye and I could not forget about seeing this one. I became curious about the accident and what exactly happened.
I started the book late one night planning just to read a few pages but that did not really work out well. I was pulled in and could not stop. The atmosphere is great and the writing is very nice. There is one problem with this book and though it did not disturb me as I got the feeling it was done on purpose I can imagine people will not like it. It was not easy to connect to the characters.
I liked the teenager Moran but did not understand the adult Moran. Ruyu is easy to follow and understand but not a very likeable person. Boyang is not really in the picture in the teenager years though he plays a critical part but is more important as an adult. Still I felt I missed crucial parts of the story to understand them and those parts did not come till the end of the book when it finally fell into place.
tasmanian_bibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
’The dead did not fade when they remained unacknowledged.’
This story, which moves between contemporary America and China around the time of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, involves the lives of four people: Moran, Ruyu, Boyang and Shaoai. When Shaoai is poisoned, quite possibly by one of the other three, their lives move in different directions and they become separated. Moran and Ruyu move to the United States, while Boyang remains in China. Their lives and their capacity for connecting to others is blighted by what happened the day Shaoai was poisoned.
‘Places do not die or vanish, yet one can obliterate their existence, just as one can a lover from an ill-fated affair.’
As we follow the lives of Moran, Ruyu, and Boyang, wondering about what really happened, and about Shaoai’s lingering amongst the living for 20 years after being poisoned, it’s difficult not to think that each of the four have been dying as a consequence of the poisoning. And yet, while my overwhelming sense is of sadness and loss, there’s something beautiful in the way Yinyun Li tells this story. Moran, Ruyu, and Boyang each help others but cannot allow others to form attachments to them. Would their lives have been different if Shaoai had not been poisoned? Who poisoned Shaoai, and why?
There are many questions raised in this novel, and few clear-cut answers. For me, the actual events twenty years ago became less important than their continuing impact. This is a novel that has invited me to think about how lives are influenced and unfold. It is also a novel that I will want to reread at some stage.
‘One could easily trace a life lived in solitude.’
Note: my thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read this novel.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
This story, which moves between contemporary America and China around the time of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, involves the lives of four people: Moran, Ruyu, Boyang and Shaoai. When Shaoai is poisoned, quite possibly by one of the other three, their lives move in different directions and they become separated. Moran and Ruyu move to the United States, while Boyang remains in China. Their lives and their capacity for connecting to others is blighted by what happened the day Shaoai was poisoned.
‘Places do not die or vanish, yet one can obliterate their existence, just as one can a lover from an ill-fated affair.’
As we follow the lives of Moran, Ruyu, and Boyang, wondering about what really happened, and about Shaoai’s lingering amongst the living for 20 years after being poisoned, it’s difficult not to think that each of the four have been dying as a consequence of the poisoning. And yet, while my overwhelming sense is of sadness and loss, there’s something beautiful in the way Yinyun Li tells this story. Moran, Ruyu, and Boyang each help others but cannot allow others to form attachments to them. Would their lives have been different if Shaoai had not been poisoned? Who poisoned Shaoai, and why?
There are many questions raised in this novel, and few clear-cut answers. For me, the actual events twenty years ago became less important than their continuing impact. This is a novel that has invited me to think about how lives are influenced and unfold. It is also a novel that I will want to reread at some stage.
‘One could easily trace a life lived in solitude.’
Note: my thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an opportunity to read this novel.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
dreamofbookspines's review against another edition
2.0
Content warning: sexual abuse of children (mid-teenage years if that matters to you)
This book was lost on me. I couldn't care about any of the characters; they seemed very one dimensional. I think it's something to do with the narration style. It just didn't work for me. Also I found it deeply frustrating that the whole premise of the mystery is just that the narrator withholds information. Like, yeah, _somebody_ poisoned somebody, we get that. Get on with the telling already, quit drawing it out!
I found the entire book intensely boring. Not objectionable material per se, just a snorefest.
This book was lost on me. I couldn't care about any of the characters; they seemed very one dimensional. I think it's something to do with the narration style. It just didn't work for me. Also I found it deeply frustrating that the whole premise of the mystery is just that the narrator withholds information. Like, yeah, _somebody_ poisoned somebody, we get that. Get on with the telling already, quit drawing it out!
I found the entire book intensely boring. Not objectionable material per se, just a snorefest.
suadolaps's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
bahamyulala's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
gracefulgracey's review against another edition
1.0
Not finished. Willl not finish. Because it's a bore