alishaabrahamsreads 's review for:

The Paper Menagerie by Ken Liu

5.0

dark emotional sad

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Ohmygosh. Ohmygosh. I wanna cry. This short story was SO good. The relationship between Jack and his mother is so heartbreaking. The scene where he keeps telling her to speak in English (when it's clear she cannot) and all she wants to voice is her confusion and love for him—that hit me in the gut. The distance growing between mother and son is palpable; first linguistically, then physically, and finally emotionally. I feel for the mom who lost her sense of identity through her son refusing to acknowledge her culture, language, and acts of service towards him. Jack’s lack of sympathy during the hospital scene made my jaw drop—I couldn't believe how dissociated he was, not even wanting to touch his mothers hand or let her tell him she loves him, only thinking of himself in a college atmosphere. Perhaps for him, it was his chance to “start fresh” and finally fit in somewhere, severing the link tying him to his Chinese identity.