Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden: Two Sisters Separated by China's Civil War
- Downloads：5036
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-06-19 17:21:44
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Zhuqing Li
- ISBN：0393541770
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Bkwmlee
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I’m quite picky when it comes to reading nonfiction books。 I tend to gravitate toward biographies and memoirs as well as essay collections， though I do also read general nonfiction when the occasion calls for it （i。e。: book club pick）。 In these instances， subject matter is pretty important， especially since it takes more focus and concentration on my part to get through a nonfiction book。 In this sense， when I read the premise for linguist and East Asian scholar Zhuqing Li’s Daughters of the I’m quite picky when it comes to reading nonfiction books。 I tend to gravitate toward biographies and memoirs as well as essay collections， though I do also read general nonfiction when the occasion calls for it （i。e。: book club pick）。 In these instances， subject matter is pretty important， especially since it takes more focus and concentration on my part to get through a nonfiction book。 In this sense， when I read the premise for linguist and East Asian scholar Zhuqing Li’s Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden， and saw that it fell perfectly into these 2 categories （biography + nonfiction subject matter I’m interested in）， I knew this was a book I would want to read。 While there is some anecdotal information interspersed throughout， majority of Li’s book is actually about her two aunts Jun and Hong， who came of age during one of the most tumultuous times in China’s history。 Born 2 years apart into the prominent and wealthy Chen family， the sisters grew up in a beautiful villa in Fuzhou built by their father — a home they came to know as the Flower Fragrant Garden。 When the onset of World War II and Japan’s invasion of various parts of China forces the Chen family to flee their home， Jun especially finds her hard-won right to further her education through attending college completely upended。 Hong also experiences hardship during this period， but she is ultimately able to finish her studies and fulfill her dream of becoming a doctor。 At the end of the war， with China and the Allies victorious， the family thought they would be able to return to their former lives as well as their beloved villa in the mountains， but it was not to be。 Civil war breaks out between the ruling Nationalist Party and the Communists， with everything coming to a head when Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek flees to Taiwan and the Communist Party comes to power under Mao Zedong。 During this time， the sisters’ lives are changed forever when Jun ends up stuck on an island under Nationalist control and， unable to return to the Mainland， eventually moves to Taiwan and marries a Nationalist general， which results in estrangement from her family for decades。 Hong meanwhile endures the many hardships brought about by the Great Leap Forward， Cultural Revolution， and many of the other disastrous “initiatives” implemented in China during that time。 It is not until 1982， after decades apart， with both sisters having survived various hardships， that Jun and Hong are finally able to reunite。 In this chronicle of her two aunts’ extraordinary lives， Zhuqing Li tells the story of her family line set against the backdrop of China’s turbulent post-WWII sociopolitical history and the evolution of the country’s fraught relationship with Taiwan。 I actually started this book last week and finished it on Saturday （June 4th）， which happened to be the 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre （a coincidence that only dawned on me after I finished reading the book）。 Though this particular story isn’t about Tiananmen Square （despite that event still being mentioned in the book， albeit briefly）， its significance in terms of China’s political history is， of course， not lost on me Even though I was only 11 years old when the Tiananmen Square massacre occurred and of course， having already immigrated to the U。S。 years before that， I was thousands of miles away， but that didn’t make it any less impactful， especially as a Chinese girl coming of age during that time。 In that context， this was， without a doubt， not an easy read by any means — hearing Jun’s and Hong’s stories， with the unflinching descriptions of harrowing experiences they had to endure， the political undercurrents that dominated their entire lives， it was hard not to be moved by the resilience and endurance of these two remarkable women。Regardless of background， this will undoubtedly be a difficult read for those who decide to pick this one up， but it is well worth the effort。 On the surface， this may seem like simply a story of two sisters separated by war， but much deeper than that， it is also an insightful look into Chinese history， culture， politics， and much more。Received ARC from W。 W。 Norton via Bookbrowse First Impressions program。 。。。more
Carol N
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In “Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden，” Zhuqing Li shares a deeply human story about her aunts， Jun and Hong， who lived through the consequences of the notorious mainland China/Taiwan’s historic split， a time of traumatic change and unmatched resilience in Asia。The sisters were the offspring of a southern Chinese family， each other’s best friend， and grew up in the 1930’s days of Old China prior to the political revolution that changed China forever。 By chance， both ladies found themselves In “Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden，” Zhuqing Li shares a deeply human story about her aunts， Jun and Hong， who lived through the consequences of the notorious mainland China/Taiwan’s historic split， a time of traumatic change and unmatched resilience in Asia。The sisters were the offspring of a southern Chinese family， each other’s best friend， and grew up in the 1930’s days of Old China prior to the political revolution that changed China forever。 By chance， both ladies found themselves separated。 June in Taiwan is married to a National general and living among fellow exiles at odds with the new regime。 On the mainland， Hong is forced to disavow her family’s background and her sister’s decision， in order to continue her career as a doctor。 She is forced to tolerate several waves of re-education by working in exile in very remote areas of the backcountry。Both ladies were faced with tense decisions as they go forth and forge careers and families midst this upheaval。 With determination and ambition on the part of both women， Jun established several important trading companies while Hong becomes one of the celebrated Chinese doctors。This riveting and deeply personal account is a celebration of these remarkable ladies’ legacies。Thank you BookBrowse for my copy。 。。。more
Laura
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