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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
it's written really well, but the stories drag a little sometimes. it's taking me forever to get through.
I upped my stars after I finished this. I still standby it dragging at certain points but it's a pretty deep, intense and emotional look at indenity and person.
I upped my stars after I finished this. I still standby it dragging at certain points but it's a pretty deep, intense and emotional look at indenity and person.
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying
Moderate: Domestic abuse
Minor: Rape, Forced institutionalization, War
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Eh. Parts were engaging and other parts were complicated to follow. I really enjoyed the part about Fa Mulan because it was creative and descriptive. The characters were definitely pronounced and developed, but there were some parts that annoyed me. For example, the constant references to ghosts. I understand that the ghosts was important culturally, but the word ghosts was used over and over and over. Maybe that was the point...that I get annoyed just like the narrator? Overall, I enjoyed parts and was annoyed by parts, hence the 3-star rating.
Hong Kingston manages to pack so much into every sentence, every paragraph. The book is dense but very readable and easy enough to follow. There's a cheeky humor threaded throughout, which balances the pain evident in the stories. I enjoyed the ghost metaphors and the frankness with which she writes.
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Maxine Hong Kingston exprime dans "The Woman Warrior" son histoire et son point de vue en tant qu'enfant d'immigrés grandissant entre ses parents chinois, tout le poids de leur culture et de leur passé, la communauté d'immigrés chinois, le fait de se situer à la confrontation entre la façon de faire chinoise de la famille et le quotidien américain, le choc des cultures et le fait d'être à la jonction de ce choc, la perception que les américains ont d'eux, la place des femmes dans les mythes chinois et comment trouver sa propre place au milieu de tout cet héritage. Maxine Hong Kingston est par ailleurs une excellente conteuse, elle sait donner toute sa puissance à un récit. Vraiment bien.
I enjoyed this book by reading it so so so slowly, like poetry
I read about this book in the "End of Your Life Book Club" by Will Schwalbe and was intrigued by it as soon as they described it. I probably wouldn't have picked it up otherwise, but I am so glad I did! I have known a number of Chinese American immigrants, but never understood some of the deep cultural differences as Maxine Hong Kingston portrays in her entertaining memoir. I love how she blends actual occurrences with fable and an almost dream-like perception of things, in the world of ghosts. This book helped me to understand the world from more of a Chinese point of view and how challenging the transition to American culture must be both for the immigrants themselves and their children. All that in a memoir that feels fun like a novel. I almost gave it 5 stars, but felt a little hanging at the end. The rest was that good.
i added this to my tbr in 2015, knowing that it was a classic but just pushed it off until now! i think that i had been misinformed about what the book was about, and i was really surprised by the structure. 'the woman warrior' is often characterized as a memoir, so i was expecting a straightforward narrative. instead, maxine hong kingston weaves together folktales, memories, non-memories, and stories to explore what being a chinese american girl in the 1950s/1960s means in the context of alllllllllll that history. i think it's interesting to look at 'the woman warrior' as more of an exploration of truths/nontruths and what we can never know about our families rather than an actual factual account of an upbringing. the author is not shy about questioning her own accounts of things and whether or not memories were constructed by herself, her mother, or others.
the first couple of sections focus mainly on stories of women and people from china. while these stories held my attention, i think i wanted more of maxine hong kingston's direct life stories, but i understand why this was included. the later chapters (especially the last two) caught my attention way more. i'm glad i read this! truly a trailblazer for asian american literature in so many ways and imo still one of the most interesting pieces out there and one of the standalones for this time period.
edit: with regards to the criticism that this book reinforces and propagates negative stereotypes of chinese / chinese american culture as being 'backwards' and uniquely oppressive towards women: i don't think the author ever implies that what she is saying is universally true nor the experience for everyone. i don't think that maxine hong kingston has to be responsible for the limited ways in which the audience of her time interpreted her work??? idk am i wrong lmk lol
the first couple of sections focus mainly on stories of women and people from china. while these stories held my attention, i think i wanted more of maxine hong kingston's direct life stories, but i understand why this was included. the later chapters (especially the last two) caught my attention way more. i'm glad i read this! truly a trailblazer for asian american literature in so many ways and imo still one of the most interesting pieces out there and one of the standalones for this time period.
edit: with regards to the criticism that this book reinforces and propagates negative stereotypes of chinese / chinese american culture as being 'backwards' and uniquely oppressive towards women: i don't think the author ever implies that what she is saying is universally true nor the experience for everyone. i don't think that maxine hong kingston has to be responsible for the limited ways in which the audience of her time interpreted her work??? idk am i wrong lmk lol