Reviews

China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh

toniherrero's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

5.0

Publicada l'any 1992, Xina Muntanya Zhang té avui dia una vigència aclaparadora. En Zhang, un homosexual mestís que amaga la seva ascendència hispana, mira de sobreviure en uns Estats Units futuristes que han patit una Gran Depressió econòmica i una posterior revolució socialista. Ell se sent un estrany al seu país i mira de progressar i d'integrar-se sense renunciar a la seva identitat, però l'estricta societat xinesa no li posa pas fàcil. Seguim els seus passos de la mà d'un seguit de personatges secundaris que es creuen amb ell en diferents moments de la vida.

Maureen F. McHugh construeix un calidoscopi humà d'una riquesa i lluentor captivadores. Com passava amb L'home dels ulls compostos, una novel·la taiwanesa en què també podem gaudir en català, els seus personatges resulten memorables i és impossible no empatitzar amb ells. Tal com feia Wu Ming-yi, McHugh fa servir la ciència-ficció com a teló de fons, gairebé com un element exòtic, per cedir el protagonisme a unes vides fragmentades que no busquen sorprendre amb una trama grandiloqüent ni rebuscada, sinó que ens remouen amb les petites lluites i drames que cadascun dels personatges ha de superar.

És un llibre cru però poètic, esperançador i molt tendre malgrat que s'hi relaten temes escabrosos i estigmes que encara avui dia perviuen a la nostra societat. Quan passes l'última pàgina de Xina Muntanya Zhang t'omple una sensació estranya: no només sents que has acompanyat com a observador a en Zhang a través del seu viatge, sinó que li has allargat la mà i has format part d'una cosa més gran. 

lgarrity's review against another edition

adventurous challenging reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

grayjay's review against another edition

4.0

Writing in the early 90s, McHugh imagines a future where China has become the global superpower, and America has become a communist country. Zhang, half Chinese, half Latino, is a construction tech who wants to stay in New York City where it's safer to be openly gay, but too expensive to live. His search for stability and a place in the world takes him to a labour job on Baffin Island, and then an Engineering school in Shanghai, where being gay can still earn you a bullet in the head. He learns to prefer happiness over wealth and the value of building community.

I thought the novel was well-deserving of both the Nebula and Hugo nominations it received. The structure, however, may have been the main weakness. She seperates the point of view characters into their own chapters, but doesn't give all of them the treatment they deserved-having been given their own chapters but not their own endings, it felt as if McHugh was just trying to make use of all her ideas in one novel. I wanted to know what happened to poor San-xiang and Alexi.

glkrose's review against another edition

challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

While I wouldn't call this an easy read subject-wise, I did find it well-paced and interesting. I liked the characters and relationships. It was eerie seeing how much of our current reality was written about back in the '90s in a dystopian kind of way? A solid read. 

geekwayne's review against another edition

4.0

‘China Mountain Zhang’ by Maureen F. McHugh was the September pick for my online book club. It’s also a novel I’ve been wanting to read for a while.

This is a mosaic novel set in a future America that has been ‘cleansed’ by China. The main character lives a couple of dual lives and keeps his identity hidden. He takes engineering jobs in Baffin Bay and China and tutors a man living in a commune on Mars. There is the strange world of cyber-kite fliers as well as the illegal pressball game. Through it all the life of China Mountain Zhang, also known as Rafael, weaves.

I really enjoyed this series of linked stories. The worldbuilding is pretty tremendous, and I liked the themes of isolation and loneliness.

gab1one's review

challenging emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia, Suicide, and Xenophobia

Minor: Rape

mdpenguin's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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? Yes

5.0

I got to the copyright page at the end of this and was amazed that it said 1992. The tech in this makes sense based on the current state of the art. And it's really cool: I love the idea of the modular busses in China and the system integrations and meta materials described in it seem like logical extensions of what people are working on now. The world-building is excellent – it's not just believable, but so fully fleshed out, from technology and economics to education and on through fashion and entertainment – and the author did a good job of letting it slowly explain itself (at least until an almost incongruous part near the end when the protagonist talks a bout the basics of what happened to make the world the way it is).

More than that, though, is that the book is really about the people and how they live in the society, which is very different and yet almost exactly the same as our own. The characters are relatable and likable. The interstitial stories between the chapters from Zhang's point of view stand well as short stories on their own while also contributing a lot to the world building and helping make the jumps between periods in Zhang's life feel more natural. I think that the author did an amazing job with the writing, both in terms of phrasing and pacing, so that it was easy to care about what was going on and be interested in what would come next.

lsparrow's review against another edition

4.0

This book was on my to read list for so long that I forgot why it was there and even what it was about. I was so pleasantly surprised by this book - mostly the story of a life, of the decisions that shape us and the directions we take - set in a possible future. I loved the inclusions of madarin and spanish in the text. I was not expecting to get sucked in so quickly but I really enjoyed it.

eletricjb's review against another edition

3.0

Too disjointed for me, would have preferred a whole book about Martine and the goats on Mars. I did like the chapter in fancy China though. Also, thumbs up for being unexpectedly gay.

books_and_keys's review against another edition

adventurous challenging hopeful reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25