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petealis's review against another edition
5.0
I went back and forth between 4 and 5 stars on this one, but what the heck, I thoroughly enjoyed it, it gets 5.
The concept of this book—that generational trauma exists to the point that the memories of our ancestors could be extrapolated from our brains—is downright kooky, and as I have before as a fantasy lover, I find myself thinking that the fake science would play better as a magic system. Partly because of that—and partly because Dorothy was my least favorite of the narrators—Dorothy’s plot line was the least interesting to me, which unfortunate with it being the core of the plot.
But it was well done. I do nonetheless like the concept, at least in that the trauma our ancestors have been through stays with us and continues to help shape who we are. Without getting too much into the science I loved the feel of the generational echoes, all these women folding into one another, linked through time by lineage. Many of the individual stories were just captivating, beautiful on their own as little historical short stories but enhanced by each other. I think the author did a decent job handling the sheer number of them, and it was sweet how it all wrapped with Annabel at the end. Altogether, it was a gorgeous read.
The concept of this book—that generational trauma exists to the point that the memories of our ancestors could be extrapolated from our brains—is downright kooky, and as I have before as a fantasy lover, I find myself thinking that the fake science would play better as a magic system. Partly because of that—and partly because Dorothy was my least favorite of the narrators—Dorothy’s plot line was the least interesting to me, which unfortunate with it being the core of the plot.
But it was well done. I do nonetheless like the concept, at least in that the trauma our ancestors have been through stays with us and continues to help shape who we are. Without getting too much into the science I loved the feel of the generational echoes, all these women folding into one another, linked through time by lineage. Many of the individual stories were just captivating, beautiful on their own as little historical short stories but enhanced by each other. I think the author did a decent job handling the sheer number of them, and it was sweet how it all wrapped with Annabel at the end. Altogether, it was a gorgeous read.
booksonthefloor's review against another edition
4.0
This book is many things. It's science fiction, with the main (?) character living in the not-so-distant future, where climate change has impacted the United States in dramatic ways and where she can undergo a controversial treatment in epigenetics. It's historical fiction, with each additional character set firmly in time amidst actual events. And it's kind of a poem, with the narrative dancing between reality and fantasy, past and present. I finished it knowing some plot points and speculating on others. It was a wonderful mystery of a book.
lonelypinereads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
darcys01's review against another edition
5.0
An amazing journey with many challenges for the characters. The ending is perfection. Another great one from this author. I trust him to take me on the journey with his characters. Time well spent reading.
knitlitcamp's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
3.5
Interesting concept, but definitely on the melancholy side with generation after generation of horrible trauma. Possibly inaccurate use of language/idioms for the early 19th century were distracting. I had to know how it was all going to come together. Maybe it would have felt more cohesive if it was told from beginning to end, but could have been easily 4 books or more.
readcharlotte's review against another edition
3.0
Speculative historical fiction spanning 250 years and multiple generations of women. Idk, this was written by a white man and I’m just bored with that. The book was fine, the writing fine, the story fine. There were some questionable scenes, and I didn’t like that the resolutions and story lines all centered around relationships/interactions with men. Also, Dorothy was negligent, I said it.
rainbowfishhh's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
maishaimani's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
eyelit's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
mara74's review against another edition
3.0
I have mixed feelings about this book. I am a Chinese immigrant myself, and I came to the US for law school. I stayed afterwards, married a white man, and am practicing immigration law. My mother-in-law recommended this book to me, and I read most of it while accompanying clients to appointments regarding their immigration status. I sat almost directly across from the check-in window and watched people checking in for what they would consider the most important interview of their lifetime. I watched an old Chinese woman have a panic attack while checking in for her citizenship interview while reading this book, and it felt ironic. It has been over 200 years since Afong first set foot in America, yet we still feel that dizziness, cluelessness, and out-of-place awkwardness rattling in our stomachs.
The book is well-written and is literate without being too pretentious. The idea behind this book is truly intriguing, and I appreciate the writing. I would, in general, recommend it to others, as I enjoyed it overall. However, I can only give it a rating of 3.5 out of 5 for the following reasons.
I deducted one star because the details about Chinese culture and literature, especially poetry, felt inaccurate to me from time to time. For example, the concept of the "ghost hero" comes from a poem that every Chinese child would learn in school, along with the historical context of that poem. Li Qingzhao wrote it when her country was invaded, and the emperor gave up half of the land without a fight. It is a very patriotic poem. Using it to describe sacrifice for family feels inappropriate to me, akin to quoting "The Star-Spangled Banner" out of context when describing how you missed your grandfather. It just doesn't fit. The same goes for most of the quotations of Chinese poetry in this book. The English translations were taken too literally without any consideration of the context. Additionally, I found it annoying how Ford kept switching between two ways of spelling Chinese in Roman letters. It was distracting and unnecessary. I couldn't help but laugh out loud when Faye, in a Chinese temple in Kunming, told the Chinese monk her Chinese name and then immediately said, "Call me Faye." It reminded me a lot of Matt Damon in the movie "The Great Wall."
I am also annoyed that over the course of 200 years, all these women's trauma seems to revolve around men and romance. Even for someone as smart and successful as Greta, it only took one man, one sexual scandal, and one bad ending to a relationship to completely destroy her. She went from being a genius coder to sleeping around with every man she could find and not even knowing who her daughter's father is overnight. The book never delves into a woman's struggles beyond the personal and romantic levels. Greta's professional success comes easily because she is a genius, and it disappears just as easily because a billionaire decides to ruin her while also compromising her personal life, all of which happened after he sexually assaulted her. Then her daughter decided to give away their small fortune to a man who doesn't deserve it. I simply dislike how all women are portrayed in this book. There is no mention of identity, professional struggle, or cultural shock when moving from one continent to another. It's hard to believe that as a Chinese girl in a British boarding school in the early 1900s, no one taunted her about her skin color, her accent, or the shape of her eyes, but she was only known as a poetry nerd. I just feel this book can be written for any family line, and they do not necessarily have to be Afong's daugthers.
The book is well-written and is literate without being too pretentious. The idea behind this book is truly intriguing, and I appreciate the writing. I would, in general, recommend it to others, as I enjoyed it overall. However, I can only give it a rating of 3.5 out of 5 for the following reasons.
I deducted one star because the details about Chinese culture and literature, especially poetry, felt inaccurate to me from time to time. For example, the concept of the "ghost hero" comes from a poem that every Chinese child would learn in school, along with the historical context of that poem. Li Qingzhao wrote it when her country was invaded, and the emperor gave up half of the land without a fight. It is a very patriotic poem. Using it to describe sacrifice for family feels inappropriate to me, akin to quoting "The Star-Spangled Banner" out of context when describing how you missed your grandfather. It just doesn't fit. The same goes for most of the quotations of Chinese poetry in this book. The English translations were taken too literally without any consideration of the context. Additionally, I found it annoying how Ford kept switching between two ways of spelling Chinese in Roman letters. It was distracting and unnecessary. I couldn't help but laugh out loud when Faye, in a Chinese temple in Kunming, told the Chinese monk her Chinese name and then immediately said, "Call me Faye." It reminded me a lot of Matt Damon in the movie "The Great Wall."
I am also annoyed that over the course of 200 years, all these women's trauma seems to revolve around men and romance. Even for someone as smart and successful as Greta, it only took one man, one sexual scandal, and one bad ending to a relationship to completely destroy her. She went from being a genius coder to sleeping around with every man she could find and not even knowing who her daughter's father is overnight. The book never delves into a woman's struggles beyond the personal and romantic levels. Greta's professional success comes easily because she is a genius, and it disappears just as easily because a billionaire decides to ruin her while also compromising her personal life, all of which happened after he sexually assaulted her. Then her daughter decided to give away their small fortune to a man who doesn't deserve it. I simply dislike how all women are portrayed in this book. There is no mention of identity, professional struggle, or cultural shock when moving from one continent to another. It's hard to believe that as a Chinese girl in a British boarding school in the early 1900s, no one taunted her about her skin color, her accent, or the shape of her eyes, but she was only known as a poetry nerd. I just feel this book can be written for any family line, and they do not necessarily have to be Afong's daugthers.