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brb_reads's review against another edition
3.0
I breezed through this book but don't feel like I really connected with the characters. It was just an OK read. Don't think I would recommend it to anyone.
jham0330's review against another edition
Quick, light read
3.5 stars, I downloaded this with my Amazon Prime account. It was fairly entertaining and I finished it fairly quickly.
3.5 stars, I downloaded this with my Amazon Prime account. It was fairly entertaining and I finished it fairly quickly.
ashedryden's review against another edition
3.0
Was really disappointed by the fatphobia in this otherwise good book.
saram618's review against another edition
2.0
This book is the literary equivalent of fat free sugar free dessert. Seems like an okay idea but not worth the effort. This book took me forever to read. Not because is was long, or complicated, or a dense read. I just didn't care about it at all and had trouble forcing myself to pick it up. I just finished this at 9:21 and will have forgotten about it completely by 9:25.
tobyyy's review against another edition
2.0
Sadly, this book did not live up to my expectations. While I consider it a worthwhile read, because it introduced me to some new ideas about cooking (I had no idea there was such a thing as artisan soy sauce) as well as culture (I have never been out of the States/Canada so some of the descriptions of Singapore were fascinating)... overall, I was bummed. The climax of the book... wait... was there a climax? There also seemed to be several interconnecting stories, except the problem is that they never really connected for me. Maybe I read it too fast, maybe I was not paying close enough attention, maybe it was just the wrong time in my life to pick this book up, but it was disappointing.
I also never really got a handle on the main character. I hesitate to say protagonist because she was kind of an anti-hero, to me. She was making bad decisions throughout the book, and justifying them... she seemed standoffish and rude to a lot of her friends in Singapore... she was downright rude to her best friend and even now that I've finished this book, I am not really sure why they parted as friends-that-would-never-be-close-again. It seems like there was just a lack of emotional connection throughout the book to any of the characters, really. The only one I felt like Ms. Chen actually enjoyed writing about was Ahkong, the main character's grandfather, and how he started his business of making handmade soy sauce.
Overall, a quick read, and one that I wish I could give more than 2 stars to, but sadly... I can't.
I also never really got a handle on the main character. I hesitate to say protagonist because she was kind of an anti-hero, to me. She was making bad decisions throughout the book, and justifying them... she seemed standoffish and rude to a lot of her friends in Singapore... she was downright rude to her best friend and even now that I've finished this book, I am not really sure why they parted as friends-that-would-never-be-close-again. It seems like there was just a lack of emotional connection throughout the book to any of the characters, really. The only one I felt like Ms. Chen actually enjoyed writing about was Ahkong, the main character's grandfather, and how he started his business of making handmade soy sauce.
Overall, a quick read, and one that I wish I could give more than 2 stars to, but sadly... I can't.
chaitea444's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
res4n8nce's review against another edition
4.0
never would I HAVE EVER expected such a good read from a book titled 'soy sauce for beginners' it taught me a lot about Singaporean culture. It was a fast and easy read!
jelundberg's review against another edition
4.0
A fast and light read, with an abiding love for both Singapore and San Francisco. Chen's evocation of late 20s / early 30s life changes, and the struggles between one's own desires and the responsibility toward family are spot-on and poignant. The interweaving narratives of Gretchen Lin's marital upheaval in the USA and the fortunes of her family's soy sauce business in SG are well-balanced, and her sensory descriptions of the titular sauce make me wish I could taste it right now.