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mahela's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Violence
bisexualbookshelf's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The narrative follows Lucy and Sam, two orphaned siblings navigating a harsh and unforgiving landscape in search of a place to call home after the death of their father. Zhang's prose is as raw and unyielding as the wilderness through which Lucy and Sam traverse, echoing the emotional terrain they must navigate.
One of the most striking aspects of Zhang's storytelling is her portrayal of the immigrant experience and the toll it takes on individuals and families. Through Lucy and Sam's journey, she skillfully unpacks the complexities of identity, the struggle for survival, and the sacrifices made in the pursuit of a better life.
Zhang's exploration of masculinity, particularly through the lens of immigrant and marginalized communities, is both nuanced and revelatory. She challenges traditional notions of masculinity, exposing its often violent manifestations while also highlighting its capacity for tenderness and resilience.
The novel's thematic breadth is vast, touching upon issues of environmental justice, colonialism, and the legacy of exploitation that continues to haunt the American landscape. Zhang's prose is imbued with a deep reverence for the land and its mysteries, underscoring the interconnectedness of nature and humanity.
This book is not merely a story; it is a meditation on memory, belonging, and the enduring bonds of family. Zhang's narrative unfolds with the grace of a myth, weaving together Chinese symbolism and reimagined history to create a haunting and unforgettable tale.
How Much of These Hills Is Gold is a masterpiece that lingers in the mind long after the final page is turned. It is a work of profound beauty and depth, offering readers a glimpse into characters grappling with the weight of their pasts and the promise of an uncertain future. This is another must-read recommendation for my diverse lit-fic lovers and anyone seeking a poignant exploration of the immigrant experience in America.
📖 Recommend For: Advocates of Environmental Justice, Explorers of Intersectional Identity, Critics of Capitalist Exploitation, Fans of Brit Bennett’s The Vanishing Half and Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner.
🔑 Key Themes: Intergenerational Trauma, Immigrant Experience, Gender Identity Exploration, Cultural Displacement, Family Bonds, Environmental Exploitation, Colonial Legacy, the Myth of the American Dream.
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Child abuse, Racism, Gore, and Alcoholism
Minor: Murder, Sexual harassment, Violence, Child death, Bullying, and Animal cruelty
The child death content warning is specifically in regards to a stillbirth.ani_raven's review
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Racism, Death of parent, Trafficking, and Abandonment
Moderate: Dysphoria, Violence, Alcohol, Bullying, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Classism, and Death
Minor: Rape
mighty_lizard_queen's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
The book is very good for the first part, but once the father is buried I think it lost its way a little bit. I suppose the father was supposed to be redeemed but I didn't buy it. The ending was also unsatisfying and felt disconnected to the earlier parts of the book.
Graphic: Animal death, Deadnaming, Grief, Trafficking, Misogyny, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Bullying, Blood, Outing, Animal cruelty, Racial slurs, Emotional abuse, Dysphoria, Sexism, Racism, Pregnancy, Xenophobia, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Death of parent, Classism, Physical abuse, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Sexual harassment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Gun violence
samwein's review
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death of parent, Miscarriage, and Racism
Moderate: Transphobia, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual violence
talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Racism, Grief, Blood, Death of parent, Gore, Death, and Classism
Moderate: Gun violence, Misogyny, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Racial slurs, Violence, Colonisation, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Pregnancy, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Excrement, Self harm, Sexual content, Vomit, and Rape
scifi_rat's review against another edition
3.75
Moderate: Colonisation, Violence, Racial slurs, Bullying, Abandonment, Misogyny, Dysphoria, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Sexism, Death, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Grief, and Racism
Minor: Sexual content and Transphobia
brynpemery's review
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Death, Grief, Sexual violence, and Death of parent
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Grief, and Abandonment
tfortilney's review against another edition
The concept of How Much of These Hills Is Gold is fascinating. Two Chinese-American siblings, one of them what you’d probably call gender-queer today, fending for themselves in the American West in the gold rush era — There is so much potential here, and I’m sure a lot of people will love this novel.
It is, however, not a novel for me, and I after reading more than 1/3 I felt it would be fairer to the book to dnf it rather than finishing it knowing I’d not give it a great rating, no matter how the next 2/3 went. I also want to “allow” myself to dnf books more often because forcing myself to finish books I don’t enjoy only makes me less enthusiastic about reading.
There’s two main things I struggled with with this novel, neither something I would ever call bad writing, just things I didn’t vibe with. One is Zhang’s poetic, sometimes abstract style which is just not my jam. (By the way, why is the century obscured when years are given (XX42), when, from the way the setting is described, it has to be the 1800s?)
The other is the immense amount of various kinds of violence the protagonists, particularly Lucy, experience. I understand that they are realistic for the setting, but I found reading such a bleak story very draining and had to force myself to pick the book up again.
To illustrate this, here’s a non-exhaustive list of violent events from the novel:
Physical and psychological child abuse Racism, including racial slurs Violence against animals, including a man purposefully breaking a three-legged dog’s last functioning hind-leg. A grown man hitting on a 12-year-old girl Two kids carrying around their father’s corpse for two months, with detailed description of said corpse’s decay
Nope. I’m sorry, but I just can’t do that.
Graphic: Sexual violence, Racism, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Animal cruelty
readingwithcoffee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
The fourth part is the weakest and honestly somewhat seemed like a female protagonist suffering in a very gendered way just to suffer even if it was used to discuss gender and racial violence. The family dysfunction was really interesting. But I also felt like Lucy was constantly acting like she didn’t care or look out for her family despite being literally her only family member that basically made every decision considering their well-being first or literally being child.
Graphic: Abandonment, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Death of parent, Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Transphobia