A review by bookinitwithahtiya
Tiananmen Square by Lai Wen

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced
  • 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? No

4.5

Tiananmen Square is an engrossing and beautifully told story that holds deep reflections about mother-daughter relationships and their complexities, the meaning of patriotism, youth and revolution, and the subtle power of community among the marginalized. It reads like a memoir or a set of vignettes but very clearly a novel with a distinct path. Wen conveys the naivety, hope, and curiosity of youth in a familiar and respectful manner, and Lai (the protagonist) is a hero in her own way and can stand as a foil for all those who aren’t necessarily the leaders or faces of a movement but part of the force and longetivity of it. Tiananmen Square by Lai Wen was a book that pulled me in and kept me reading, wanting to know what was happening to lead up to the famous Tiananmen Square protests but also how Lai was going to blossom into a young woman amidst the chaos.
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