A review by misspalah
My Enemy's Cherry Tree by Sylvia Li-chun Lin, Wang Ting-Kuo, Howard Goldblatt

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

In any case, there was a message of mourning in the photos; it signalled that the source of the tragedy had been terminated. Even if I were willing to write captions for the photographs, I doubt that I would have been brave enough to look at his work. Hadn't Ojuzi been led astray, following him wherever he went? She'd have held her breath, her eye behind the viewfinder, as she waited for a perfect shot framed by the master. Filled with adulation, her face brimming with my sort of naivety, she was oblivious to the notion that in his loneliness, so timeworn, he could succumb to the power of youth. What a pity, those once brilliant blossoms, my enemy's cherry tree. The heartache hit me after I sobered up, and the disappearance of the tree triggered even greater sorrow. Miss Baixiu's hopes would surely be dashed. How could she think that I would be high-minded enough to forgive her father, for that would amount to inserting the word 'love' into 'hate'? I turned over the photo without the tree and wrote a brief soliloquy late that night: An enemy destroyed in a dream; a cherry tree blooming at the bead of the bed

• My Enemy’s Cherry Tree by Wang Ting Kuo

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I believe this is my first Taiwanese novel, and it was translated into English by Howard Goldblatt and Sylvia Li-chun Lin. Honestly, they did an admirable job with the translation.

The book starts off incredibly well. The prose is melancholic and poetic, with quotes that remind me of contemporary Korean and Japanese fiction. I found myself effortlessly passing through each sentence and turning the pages with ease. The story follows a man who comes from a background of poverty and loss, starting with nothing and gradually building a life for himself. Along the way, he finds love and happiness with Qiuzi. They share the same dream and are committed to building a future together, but something changes along the way. One day, Qiuzi disappears without a trace or goodbye, leaving him brokenhearted and frustrated. We follow him as he retraces his steps, trying to understand why Qiuzi left. He blames his suffering on Luo Yiming, a wealthy businessman they both met and connected with. He then opens a small café in a place where they were once happy, hoping she'll return one day. I appreciate how the central conflict becomes the novel's focal point without demanding a resolution. It serves as the character's point of reference—like a window into his life. However, as the story progresses, it becomes confusing and difficult to follow. I enjoyed the beginning and the end, but the middle lost me, unfortunately. Despite this, I did enjoy the writing style. Even though we don't get a clear answer about Qiuzi’s whereabouts, I have a sense that she's somewhere pursuing her newfound passion, no longer tied to a mundane, lonely life or waiting for her husband to return from chasing his dream. I also suspect that Qiuzi left because she felt guilty about cheating on her husband with Luo Yiming, possibly doing so to secure funding for her husband's business proposal. I do believe that this book isn’t for everyone. If you’re looking for a strong plot, this might not be the right choice. But if you’re drawn to deep imagery and a poignant tale of waiting, longing, and loss, then this is a book you should consider.