amyreadsgoodbooks 's review for:

Dreams of Joy by Lisa See

5.0

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The historical horror of the Chinese famine of 1959, the events that lead to and the oppression of this history by the communist regime is made very real in "Dreams of Joy". The total number of deaths from this 2 year famine are unknown but historians estimate around 44 million Chinese were starved to death by Mao as a way to end opposition to the rise of communism. Lisa See brings a very human and family oriented perspective to this story that encompasses all types of love, compassion, resilence and tradition. I read "Dreams of Joy" without having read "Shanghai Girls" and was incredibly moved and impressed with the content both historically and emotionally. Experiencing how the characters grow and evolve in their different enviornments is inspiring and lovely to have read as a mother, sister and daughter. I honestly couldn't stop reading this book and am so glad I read it.