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A review by book_concierge
The Girl Who Played Go by Shan Sa
4.0
In a small town in Manchuria in the 1930s, a 16-year-old girl is more concerned with her daily game of go and her fledgling romantic relationship with a dissident student, than she is with the potential for war with Japan. She is a master at the game, surprising for one so young (and a girl, no less). One day a stranger challenges her. Their game continues for days; they rarely speak, never introduce themselves, and she does not know that he is a Japanese soldier in disguise.
The novel is told in alternating points of view, yet both are related in first person. It took me a few chapters to get into the rhythm of the work, but the author remains consistent; first the girl, then the soldier. The chapters are short and I had little trouble telling which character was narrating.
I’m glad that Shan Sa included footnotes on the Japanese and Chinese history, because my own education in this is woefully lacking. I wish I understood more about the game of go, though I do know that it is a game of strategy.
What really shines in the novel, however, is how the characters come to life. The reader witnesses the headlong rush of first love, the despair of a broken relationship, the longing for understanding and/or deeper connection, the yearning for home, the desire to break away, the realization of a misguided decision. I was engrossed in their lives, and completely stunned by the ending.
The novel is told in alternating points of view, yet both are related in first person. It took me a few chapters to get into the rhythm of the work, but the author remains consistent; first the girl, then the soldier. The chapters are short and I had little trouble telling which character was narrating.
I’m glad that Shan Sa included footnotes on the Japanese and Chinese history, because my own education in this is woefully lacking. I wish I understood more about the game of go, though I do know that it is a game of strategy.
What really shines in the novel, however, is how the characters come to life. The reader witnesses the headlong rush of first love, the despair of a broken relationship, the longing for understanding and/or deeper connection, the yearning for home, the desire to break away, the realization of a misguided decision. I was engrossed in their lives, and completely stunned by the ending.