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Title: Wild Swans by Jung Chang, Rowena Cooper ISBN: 0-7451-6525-7 Publisher: Chivers Audio Books Pub. Date: January, 1996 Format: Audio Cassette Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $124.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.66 (232 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: China - before, during & after Mao
Comment: This is the best memoir about China that I've read (including both "Life and Death in Shanghai" and "Red Azelea", both of which are excellent). The writing is wonderful! But more, the story evolves through 3 generations, from pre-Communist China, through the days leading up to the October 1949 Communist state, the early days of Communist China (including very important, personal factual accounts about the so-called "Great Leap Forward," etc.), through the Cultural Revolution, and into the dawn of post-Mao China. It is written from an almost unique point of view, by a daughter of 2 Communist Party members, both mid-level cadre. The daughter, now living in the West, brings to the memoir a clearly deep and abiding love of China, of the Chinese people. Although she gives credit to the Communist Party for things done right, esp in the early years of the revolution, she also takes dead-on aim at the party's (and esp its highest leaders') acts that caused incredible suffering for tens, hundreds of millions. It is a wonderful book. If you have an interest in Chinese history, in Mao's China, and the dawn of early post-Mao days -- then find this book and read it!
Rating: 4
Summary: A Complete Yet Engaging Historical Account
Comment: I was given Wild Swans to read prior to a summer trip to Beijing. Being a high school student, I was not only daunted by the heft of the book, but by the extensive historical chronology and family tree in the introduction as well. I was also unsure as to whether the story would be a Chinese-generation plot along the lines of Amy Tan or whether it would be more of a strict historical recount of China in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Despite my apprehensions, I decided to go ahead and read it, and I have been thoroughly delighted with the results of my endeavor.
Wild Swans is what I would term a "human-interest history," meaning that the dry historical aspect of the book is tempered by the human emotion surrounding the individual events. Jung Chang uses the female leaders of each generation to provide a thoughtful outlook on the traditions and culture of China. For me, the best way to gain a true feel for the attitudes of a specific time period is to hear a personal account. This is the book's most salient quality. Chang makes the most of the little details that encompass the environment of the characters and uses the thoughts and feelings of her family to convey key concepts pertaining to Chinese morals and behaviors.
The concise language of the book also helps to promote these historical images and gives the book a quick tempo. Each anecdote is told in the same, somewhat removed manner, even Chang's own experiences. While some might find this an impersonal tactic, I felt that it allowed the tragedies of the story to shine by basing them purely on their own facets. Any extraneous writing would have clouded the sheer pain involved in a number of the events, and Chang's distance allows the reader to recreate the scene and absorb the historical depth behind it. Chang's own academic experience provides a particularly striking cultural contrast to typical Western thought processes and teachings.
Of course, there are some minor flaws in the book. Chang tends to gloss over her father's upbringing and adolescence and lingers on her grandmother's trials during her youth and during the Communist takeover, resulting in some unbalanced character depictions. Chang's privileged lifestyle prior to and then under the Communists also provides a lopsided view as to the true reign of Mao and the general state of China during the early Communist years. However, bias is to be expected whenever dealing with a personal account, and these deficiencies become lost in the greater framework of the book.
I have learned more from this book about Chinese history than I could have ever hoped to acquire from a guidebook or textbook. I highly recommend this book to anyone planning to travel to China in the near future or for anyone who is looking for an informative, yet entertaining, story of a family in China over the years.
Rating: 5
Summary: Outsanding
Comment: (Aug 2003 release) Being interested in Chinese culture for sometime, I finally found a book that has given me something other than state sponsored history facts. I came across this book by accident. I began reading at the bookstore on Saturday evening and wasn't able to put it down until going to work on Monday morning. This book made me laugh, cry and scared the **** out of me in some places. It has definitely given me a wider perspective on the Chinese people and its culture. I'm looking forward to the release of Jung Chang's next book on Mao due out this year.
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Title: Life and Death in Shanghai by Nien Cheng ISBN: 014010870X Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: May, 1988 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
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Title: River Town : Two Years on the Yangtze by Peter Hessler ISBN: 0060953748 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 24 December, 2001 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: The Good Women of China : Hidden Voices by XINRAN XUE ISBN: 1400030803 Publisher: Anchor Pub. Date: 11 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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Title: Falling Leaves : The Memoir of an Unwanted Chinese Daughter by Adeline Yen Mah ISBN: 0767903579 Publisher: Broadway Pub. Date: 06 April, 1999 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Red China Blues : My Long March From Mao to Now by Jan Wong ISBN: 0385482329 Publisher: Anchor Pub. Date: 19 May, 1997 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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