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A review by ywanderingreads
Red Azalea by Anchee Min
3.0
This is Anchee Min’s memoir of growing up in the last years of Mao’s ruling in China. Mao used children to carry out the ‘Cultural Revolution’ from 1966 to 1967 and pass on his ideologies. During his time, many people were killed or get sent off to labour farms for not following his ideologies. Families lived in terror, not knowing when council members will show up and search their homes. This was the same for Anchee.
Anchee grew up in a family who fully conforms to the ideals of the Communism. Her youth is filled with absorbing and obsessing over the ideals of the Communist Party. The older she grew, the more conflicted she becomes about the life that she is meant to live in order to survive and not let her parents and the Party down. As a bright young woman, she is sent off to work at red Fire Farm where thousands of young people from other cities were sent to grow and harvest crops for the Communist Party. Her life on the farm became more bearable when she forms a strong friendship with Yan. Later on, an opportunity arises for Anchee to become an actress in a play called the Red Azalea. She thought she had finally found her way out but everything is not as easy as it seems.
This was quite an eye opening read for me. I learned that during Mao’s ruling, all Chinese citizens are to liberate themselves off any individualism and personal dreams. Everything you do, you need to have the Party’s best interest in mind. Everything had to be sacrificed to the greater scheme of making China great. You have no voice and no freedom. It is quite a heavy read but well worth for those who wants to learn a little more about Chinese history.
Anchee grew up in a family who fully conforms to the ideals of the Communism. Her youth is filled with absorbing and obsessing over the ideals of the Communist Party. The older she grew, the more conflicted she becomes about the life that she is meant to live in order to survive and not let her parents and the Party down. As a bright young woman, she is sent off to work at red Fire Farm where thousands of young people from other cities were sent to grow and harvest crops for the Communist Party. Her life on the farm became more bearable when she forms a strong friendship with Yan. Later on, an opportunity arises for Anchee to become an actress in a play called the Red Azalea. She thought she had finally found her way out but everything is not as easy as it seems.
This was quite an eye opening read for me. I learned that during Mao’s ruling, all Chinese citizens are to liberate themselves off any individualism and personal dreams. Everything you do, you need to have the Party’s best interest in mind. Everything had to be sacrificed to the greater scheme of making China great. You have no voice and no freedom. It is quite a heavy read but well worth for those who wants to learn a little more about Chinese history.