Reviews with content warning for Racism - The Joy Luck Club

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

29 reviews

bookishevy's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

I watched the film adaptation of this book when I was 15 and didn't find out it was a book until a decade later, so it's been on my TBR for a while.

Four Chinese women who immigrated to San Francisco have been meeting weekly since 1949 to play mahjong and tell stories of their lives in China and what led to them leaving their home. They call themselves the Joy Luck Club.

This is a story about four women and their four daughters. The women tell about their pasts and their hopes for their daughters' futures. The relationship between a mother and daughter is intricate, but it's even more so when the mother is an immigrant raising an American daughter. The younger women have no idea the types of lives their mothers led in China. Secrets are revealed.

From the daughers' perspectives, it's clear they're more American than Chinese, but their mothers are unwilling to accept their American mentalities.There is this struggle between the American and Chinese identities. The daughters don't think their mothers know anything while the mothers think they know everything while also dealing with their anxiety around not being good enough.

Through storytelling, they warn their daughters against making the mistakes they made so they can be more successful. Storytelling also instills their legacy. The stories cover topics like Chinese mythology and the horrors of the Sino-Japanese War, like having to leave loved ones behind, the things they had to do to survive, including honoring their parents and doing what was expected of them as young Chinese women. They expect their daughters to make the same sacrifices they made, but their daughters are American. They have choices and times have changed.

The mothers reminisce about a China of the past. 1980s China is becoming Americanized, as one of the daughters realizes on a trip. And I laughed when one of the mothers realizes she's viewed as an American tourist on her own trip back home.

I absolutely loved this book. Now I have to re-watch the film.

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vixenreader's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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

4.0

Although it is a product of its time, it is still a pinnacle work in depicting the lives of Asian women, and it is a tender portrait of the deep pain and love that is shared among mothers and daughters.

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rnbhargava's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

The chapters are essentially a compilation of short stories that help the reader come to a consensus reaction about the personal history and lives of these mothers and daughters. You experience their joys and struggles regarding the dynamics in their personal relationships.

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phantomgecko's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This novel was about both interpersonal and intrapersonal complexity. Big fan of that. Also an enlightening look into Chinese (and Americanborn Chinese) culture. I actually liked the nonlinear and episodic narrative. The sections about early 1900s China were most interesting to me.

It would have been easier for me to keep the characters straight if I'd been reading instead of listening, so rip to my understanding.

Serious question tho...in Chinese culture...is there such a thing as friends? None of these women liked each other. All competition and judgment all the time.

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thomasina's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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michaelion's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad 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

4.25

I had no expectations other than I knew it would fuck me up. Any story about mothers and daughters. Especially women of color! So complex!! Too real!!!

I don't like reviews with quotes from the piece of media but I had to stop reading to make note of this masterpiece and let it simmer for a while: "And even though I taught my daughter the opposite, she still came out the same way! Maybe it is because she was born to me and she was born a girl. And I was born to my mother and I was born a girl. All of us are like stairs, one step after another, going up and down, but all going the same way."

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