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yjpenny's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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
3.5
tzurky's review
5.0
An excellent book, very emotional. The stories were gut-wrenching (which I enjoy), perhaps even more so because they seemed true to life. I would recommend it to anyone who can stomach the unpleasantness of reading about the realities of life we try to escape by immersing ourselves into books.
While the stories were uniquely Chinese, in that they reflect the political, economic and social context of the country, they deal with universal human experiences, such as love, family, finding purpose in live etc.
I was surprised, however, at all the goodreads reviews bringing up how the stories are so critical of China (for better or worse). I believe them to be more far-reaching in scope. Being born in another former communist country, whose society is similarly traditional, I see most of the issues brought up in the stories reflected in the social relationships of my home country and I believe that they may apply to all traditional societies who place value on an individual only in relation to his or her contribution to that society. For instance, I immagine that filial devotion is a similarly crushing responsibility (my personal opinion on the topic) in India or Japan, two countries that were never communist.
While the stories were uniquely Chinese, in that they reflect the political, economic and social context of the country, they deal with universal human experiences, such as love, family, finding purpose in live etc.
I was surprised, however, at all the goodreads reviews bringing up how the stories are so critical of China (for better or worse). I believe them to be more far-reaching in scope. Being born in another former communist country, whose society is similarly traditional, I see most of the issues brought up in the stories reflected in the social relationships of my home country and I believe that they may apply to all traditional societies who place value on an individual only in relation to his or her contribution to that society. For instance, I immagine that filial devotion is a similarly crushing responsibility (my personal opinion on the topic) in India or Japan, two countries that were never communist.
yapxinyi's review
4.0
Recently started reading more Asian (more Chinese than Asian, I guess) literature short stories, after [b:The Sorrows of Others|57963486|The Sorrows of Others|Ada Zhang|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1664560830l/57963486._SY75_.jpg|90821379] by Ada Zhang, which I enjoyed. It was probably confusing for me to also have started reading [b:Tomb Sweeping|63310838|Tomb Sweeping|Alexandra Chang|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1675641075l/63310838._SY75_.jpg|84787050] by Alexandra Chang at the same time, because both featured a story about orchids. But it was so interesting that each of these 3 short story collections, centred around Chinese stories and the Chinese immigrant tension, had such different styles!
In any case, what I liked about this book was how unique each story was. Each character was sympathetic in their own way, though my favourite was probably "The Princess of Nebraska", "Love in the Marketplace", and in some sad way, "Immortality"?
I find that many Chinese stories are full of minor tragedies, the weight of grief, the impossibility of things. Just as Chinese songs are a hundred times sadder... Just as these devastating quotes:
I will be thinking of these stories for some time :( Might reread "The Princess of Nebraska" soon.
In any case, what I liked about this book was how unique each story was. Each character was sympathetic in their own way, though my favourite was probably "The Princess of Nebraska", "Love in the Marketplace", and in some sad way, "Immortality"?
I find that many Chinese stories are full of minor tragedies, the weight of grief, the impossibility of things. Just as Chinese songs are a hundred times sadder... Just as these devastating quotes:
It amazes and saddens Mrs. Su that Beibei's life is so tenacious that it has outlived the love that once made it.
They were comrades, trapped in a life with the woman they could not love, but could not leave, either.
"It is what we sacrifice that makes life meaningful."
I will be thinking of these stories for some time :( Might reread "The Princess of Nebraska" soon.
mariomenti's review
5.0
One thing I love is going to charity shops and look through their fiction books, just to see if there's something there that looks like I'd enjoy it. Very often this is the way I come across an author I've not heard before, and often it's books that were up for an award a few years ago, but that I've missed.
Yiyun Li's collection of short stories "A Thousand Years Of Good Prayers" is one such book I absolutely loved. Beautifully spare, it tells the story (and history) of modern China through the protagonists' "insignificant" (to history) lives. At times wickedly humorous, but more than anything utterly heartbreaking in their honesty, these are stories that will stay with me. And it feels like it shines a light onto the complex history of modern China more than any other fiction book I've read recently.
Yiyun Li's collection of short stories "A Thousand Years Of Good Prayers" is one such book I absolutely loved. Beautifully spare, it tells the story (and history) of modern China through the protagonists' "insignificant" (to history) lives. At times wickedly humorous, but more than anything utterly heartbreaking in their honesty, these are stories that will stay with me. And it feels like it shines a light onto the complex history of modern China more than any other fiction book I've read recently.
abbie_'s review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
Possibly my own attention span was to blame here, but I couldn’t fully get into this collection. The stories were on the longer side which I don’t think I’m in the mood for right now. They’re also unrelentingly bleak. Poverty, unwanted pregnancy, rejected queerness, loveless marriages, cycles of violence and trauma never cease within this collection, and it definitely took its toll - which is indeed the point and therefore it’s a successful collection in terms of shedding light on these issues in China. I’ll definitely be picking up more from Yiyun Li in the future.
logikitty's review against another edition
will be returning to this one; it's just on the backburner!
sadiereadsagain's review against another edition
4.0
It's been a while since I've read a short story collection. They can sometimes be hit or miss, and even good collections tend to have a few dud stories. But I liked every tale in this collection (if we ignore the insulting resolution of the one about the unwanted pregnancy). The strong sense of culture was the backbone of the book, and each story was tinged with a dose of heartbreak. The writing was beautiful without being flowery. A really good read.