A review by kristinasshelves
Good Chinese Wife: A Love Affair with China Gone Wrong by Susan Blumberg-Kason

4.0

Susan chronicles her relationship with Cai from their initial meeting while studying in Hong Kong, to their marriage living in parts of China and later California, to their eventual divorce. While I acknowledge that memoirs are naturally biased to make the author seem better than they are, I did not get much of that sense in this story. Susan is vulnerably honest in her recollections, describing herself as an inexperienced dater and timid partner to Cai until the birth of their son. I so enjoyed following her journey to stand up for herself and her son and her ultimate realization of how truly dysfunctional and abusive her marriage had become. I could not imagine sitting quietly in the face of things she suspected/knew Cai was doing. I appreciated the respect given to Chinese culture, which has much different norms from the Americanisms to which Susan was accustomed. I applaud Susan for sharing her story so candidly and for being brave to leave Cai for the sake of her son. I hope he was able to learn from their marriage and treat future partners better.