The Many Daughters of Afong Moy
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- Create Date：2022-09-11 06:53:50
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Jamie Ford
- ISBN：1982158212
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Summary
Dorothy Moy breaks her own heart for a living。
As Washington’s former poet laureate， that’s how she describes channeling her dissociative episodes and mental health struggles into her art。 But when her five-year-old daughter exhibits similar behavior and begins remembering things from the lives of their ancestors， Dorothy believes the past has truly come to haunt her。 Fearing that her child is predestined to endure the same debilitating depression that has marked her own life， Dorothy seeks radical help。
Through an experimental treatment designed to mitigate inherited trauma， Dorothy intimately connects with past generations of women in her family: Faye Moy， a nurse in China serving with the Flying Tigers; Zoe Moy， a student in England at a famous school with no rules; Lai King Moy， a girl quarantined in San Francisco during a plague epidemic; Greta Moy， a tech executive with a unique dating app; and Afong Moy， the first Chinese woman to set foot in America。
As painful recollections affect her present life， Dorothy discovers that trauma isn’t the only thing she’s inherited。 A stranger is searching for her in each time period。 A stranger who’s loved her through all of her genetic memories。 Dorothy endeavors to break the cycle of pain and abandonment， to finally find peace for her daughter， and gain the love that has long been waiting， knowing she may pay the ultimate price。
As Washington’s former poet laureate， that’s how she describes channeling her dissociative episodes and mental health struggles into her art。 But when her five-year-old daughter exhibits similar behavior and begins remembering things from the lives of their ancestors， Dorothy believes the past has truly come to haunt her。 Fearing that her child is predestined to endure the same debilitating depression that has marked her own life， Dorothy seeks radical help。
Through an experimental treatment designed to mitigate inherited trauma， Dorothy intimately connects with past generations of women in her family: Faye Moy， a nurse in China serving with the Flying Tigers; Zoe Moy， a student in England at a famous school with no rules; Lai King Moy， a girl quarantined in San Francisco during a plague epidemic; Greta Moy， a tech executive with a unique dating app; and Afong Moy， the first Chinese woman to set foot in America。
As painful recollections affect her present life， Dorothy discovers that trauma isn’t the only thing she’s inherited。 A stranger is searching for her in each time period。 A stranger who’s loved her through all of her genetic memories。 Dorothy endeavors to break the cycle of pain and abandonment， to finally find peace for her daughter， and gain the love that has long been waiting， knowing she may pay the ultimate price。
Reviews
Ellen
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4-1/2 ** Epigenetics， karma， memories， trauma， history…so much in this novel to think about。 It old have been five stars if I had been able to remember the different stories without having to go back through the pages to refresh my memory。
Alicia
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Hated the end seems like author just wanted to finish the book
Kimberly Williams Smith
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4⭐️ 📖/🎧 for this very unique literary/historical fiction。 I have never read a book like this—it explores the concept of epigenetics and inherited trauma。 Does the trauma of our ancestors get passed to us in some way？ The main character， Dorothy， has lived a life battling depression—can she save her daughter from this same fate？ This book isn’t easy to read， but it will have me thinking for some time。 The end will leave something to be desired for a lot of readers （myself included—I wanted more u 4⭐️ 📖/🎧 for this very unique literary/historical fiction。 I have never read a book like this—it explores the concept of epigenetics and inherited trauma。 Does the trauma of our ancestors get passed to us in some way？ The main character， Dorothy， has lived a life battling depression—can she save her daughter from this same fate？ This book isn’t easy to read， but it will have me thinking for some time。 The end will leave something to be desired for a lot of readers （myself included—I wanted more understanding）， but it was still “fitting” in it’s own way。 I was scared the audio would be too hard given all the characters — but it was pretty easy to follow。 。。。more
Megin （sharing_my_shelves）
，
"My whole life， an echo of so many generations， so close to love， to acceptance， to happiness， to joy， but always ending with so much。。。misadventure。"Oh this big， bountiful， beautiful book。 Jamie Ford has described this book as a big box of crayons。 Well bravo Mr。 Ford for finding an avenue to use each， and every one of those colors， and possibly even inventing a few new ones in the process。 This is a big book full of。。。well。。。everything。 A multi genre tapestry that also incorporates strings of "My whole life， an echo of so many generations， so close to love， to acceptance， to happiness， to joy， but always ending with so much。。。misadventure。"Oh this big， bountiful， beautiful book。 Jamie Ford has described this book as a big box of crayons。 Well bravo Mr。 Ford for finding an avenue to use each， and every one of those colors， and possibly even inventing a few new ones in the process。 This is a big book full of。。。well。。。everything。 A multi genre tapestry that also incorporates strings of big themes， big science， big emotions， and big ideas。The story is delivered through seven generations of Moy women， in a nonlinear timeline。 I did not find any issues with the jumping to past， to future， to present， ect。 While the many stories have similar happenings of tragic heartache and loss， they are distinct enough to distinguish where you are and with whom。 Ford writes in a way that we traverse through this family saga of 250 years at a slower pace， but please， do not mistake slow for boring。 I was absolutely captivated from our first introduction to Faye until our final glimpse of Annabel。 My final thoughts？ Did I close this book still having some unanswered questions？ Yes。 Am I still left thinking about these characters weeks after I've finished？ Again yes。 Am I a fan of Jamie Ford's big box of crayons？ Hands down， yes。 。。。more
Donna
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I listened to this novel， but decided it would have been easier to follow if I had it in print so that I could go back and remember who each of the Moy daughters were。 I'm not a fan of science-fiction or fantasy， so this was not my favorite Jamie Ford book。 I listened to this novel， but decided it would have been easier to follow if I had it in print so that I could go back and remember who each of the Moy daughters were。 I'm not a fan of science-fiction or fantasy， so this was not my favorite Jamie Ford book。 。。。more
Jordan
，
This book was an incredible read！ I have recommended it to three of my friends and will be hiding it to another friend for her birthday。 I did have to use sticky note tabs to mark the names of the women。 That way， If I needed to go back to reread what happened to a specific person it is easier to find。 I loved loved loved this book。
Kathy Neus
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Rounding up to 3。5 stars。 This novel had a kick-ass first chapter。 I was hooked。 The first third was very engaging， and I was really loving it。 However， I ended up being least interested in the main character of Dorothy vs。 the others from earlier generations as I went along - hence the 3。5 vs。 4 stars。 She got the most page-time。 I did love the overall concept and idea of the story， and the author's note and his sources at the end are recommended reading。 Rounding up to 3。5 stars。 This novel had a kick-ass first chapter。 I was hooked。 The first third was very engaging， and I was really loving it。 However， I ended up being least interested in the main character of Dorothy vs。 the others from earlier generations as I went along - hence the 3。5 vs。 4 stars。 She got the most page-time。 I did love the overall concept and idea of the story， and the author's note and his sources at the end are recommended reading。 。。。more
Nicole Strickland
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This book had a lot of potential I think。 And I really liked what I read so far but it was just so slow I kept losing track of every sentence。 I don't want to blame the book as much as I don't think I was in the right place to read it。 This book had a lot of potential I think。 And I really liked what I read so far but it was just so slow I kept losing track of every sentence。 I don't want to blame the book as much as I don't think I was in the right place to read it。 。。。more
Ann
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If you’re a romantic， this is your book。 The romance stands in the background as the family stories fill the foreground。 A few of the stories drew me in more than others。 The ending does not disappoint。I believe family trauma travels through the genes and Jamie Ford undergirds his story with this truth。
Megan Karwacki
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4。5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️💫This story took me a long time to get into - I got stuck on the changing eras and trying to keep Afong’s lineage straight。 Once I realized that I was making things harder on myself than necessary， I flew through this story。 I loved the exploration of generational trauma and the ability to get to know the stories of each of the women descended from Afong。 The end came hard and fast， and I’m still a little confused by some of what happened， but ultimately I really enjoyed the d 4。5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️💫This story took me a long time to get into - I got stuck on the changing eras and trying to keep Afong’s lineage straight。 Once I realized that I was making things harder on myself than necessary， I flew through this story。 I loved the exploration of generational trauma and the ability to get to know the stories of each of the women descended from Afong。 The end came hard and fast， and I’m still a little confused by some of what happened， but ultimately I really enjoyed the descriptive writing and the many stories that all came together to complete this story。 。。。more
Emily Christopher
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The Many Daughters of Afong Moy⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: Historical FictionFormat: Kindle eBook & Physical BookDate Published: 8/2/22Author: Jamie FordPublisher: Atria BooksPages: 384GR: 4。00I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Atria Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased。Synopsis: As Washington’s former poet laureate， her five-year-old daughter exhibits similar behavior and begins remembering things from the lives of their ancestors， Dorothy believes the past has The Many Daughters of Afong Moy⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: Historical FictionFormat: Kindle eBook & Physical BookDate Published: 8/2/22Author: Jamie FordPublisher: Atria BooksPages: 384GR: 4。00I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Atria Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased。Synopsis: As Washington’s former poet laureate， her five-year-old daughter exhibits similar behavior and begins remembering things from the lives of their ancestors， Dorothy believes the past has truly come to haunt her。 Fearing that her child is predestined to endure the same debilitating depression that has marked her own life， Dorothy seeks radical help。 Through an experimental treatment designed to mitigate inherited trauma。 Dorothy intimately connects with past generations of women in her family。 Dorothy endeavors to break the cycle of pain and abandonment， to finally find peace for her daughter， and gain the love that has long been waiting， knowing she may pay the ultimate price。My Thoughts: I did not like historical fiction when I started my journey， slowly I am migrating towards it and this was an excellent stepping stone！ The story is narrated from the POV of 7 women， from their own perspectives。 The story is told in alternating timelines that is not placed in any chronological order。 This was a very interesting read， but incredibly sad。 This book had a little of everything， philosophical， mystery， some magic， and was extremely heartwarming。 The characters were well flushed out in the story， well developed， multiple generations covered， mysterious， and very intriguing。 The author’s writing style was multifaceted complex， thought provoking， historical， cultural， and kept me engaged。 This was a powerful novel that was Read with Jeanna’s Book in August。 Afong Moy was based on a true character， which gave the book an interesting flare。 The ending does an amazing job of tying everything together is a feel good ending。 I would highly recommend picking up this novel today！！ 。。。more
AmyJMcF
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This is not a bad book， just not what I expected nor wanted。I envisioned a sweeping， multi-generational story， à la Amy Tan， but this was not it。The novel revolves around the idea of epigenetics， the idea that people inherit buried memories of their ancestors’ traumas 。 Interesting， perhaps， but a slog to plow through， for me， anyway。
Elle
，
4。5 stars。I love Jamie Ford's writing style。 It has an interesting combination of comforting and unsettling qualities and is brilliantly atmospheric。 His character work is wonderful and I just love the way his stories come to life。 Though I have only read historical fiction from him in the past， this novel mixes history with the future and science with a bit of magical realism。 It's an interesting framework for a story and incredibly creative。The women created in the story are all very distinct 4。5 stars。I love Jamie Ford's writing style。 It has an interesting combination of comforting and unsettling qualities and is brilliantly atmospheric。 His character work is wonderful and I just love the way his stories come to life。 Though I have only read historical fiction from him in the past， this novel mixes history with the future and science with a bit of magical realism。 It's an interesting framework for a story and incredibly creative。The women created in the story are all very distinct and strong， despite their traumas。 Dorothy appeared to be the weakest of the "daughters"， which makes sense as you read the story and understand the theory behind the work。 However， this did make her a little more unlikable in my eyes， so may be a reader turn off for her character。 Regardless， all of the characters （and multiple POVs） are magnificently crafted and very well researched for their individual time periods。 This approach does mean that there are jumps between both time and character that could be confusing for some readers， but I really enjoyed reading about the different women。I found the research behind the primary basis for the story very interesting and am glad that the author decided to introduce the book with an author's note， as I think this sets up readers for a greater understanding of the narrative （even though it is actually explained over the course of the plot）。 Those who like to go into a book knowing nothing would be wise to skip this introduction as it could be considered by some to be a bit of a spoiler。This novel is full of generational sadness and historical misogyny， pulling the reader through multiple emotional journeys。 The way these are all interwoven and somewhat influence one another is masterfully done and I loved the way everything came together。 This is a beautiful epic story with an interesting magical realism/sci-fi twist that I found both entertaining and contemplative。 There is a lot to unpack in this story and a lot to consider once the tale is finished。 A great thought piece and a lovely novel。 。。。more
Penny
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I loved the concept but did find it a bit difficult to follow sometimes。
Melissa
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Thoughtful approach to trauma。
Gwen Daniels
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A perfect book club book！ I found the individual stories poignant and moving， made all the better by the threads of epigenetics。 Now I just need someone with whom to discuss the ending！
Avra
，
enjoyed， a lot of characters to track， some sort of mystical type things。。 enjoyable
Jessica Rogers
，
“Karma is more like a suitcase。 You have to be unafraid to open it up and look at what’s inside， to unpack the things you don’t need。 Karma is the climate of the past， which shapes how much leeway we have in the future。”This book was amazing！ FULL of trauma but an incredible look at generational trauma and the （pseudo） science behind。 It broke my heart SO many times and made me downright angry in a few places but what an incredible story。 There was definitely a point in the book that I thought， “Karma is more like a suitcase。 You have to be unafraid to open it up and look at what’s inside， to unpack the things you don’t need。 Karma is the climate of the past， which shapes how much leeway we have in the future。”This book was amazing！ FULL of trauma but an incredible look at generational trauma and the （pseudo） science behind。 It broke my heart SO many times and made me downright angry in a few places but what an incredible story。 There was definitely a point in the book that I thought， “I hate this！”， but a good book should make you feel。 “You know， the best thing anyone can ever hope for in life is a good third act。” Bravo， Dorothy， for the third act。 。。。more
Chanda Ferguson
，
This is a book I wanted to make a home out of and never leave。 Sometimes books draw you in that way。 My copy is underlined， dog-eared， there are doodles and notes in the margin， and I savored every page when I wasn’t in a fast-paced story I couldn’t wait to see the ending of。 It was wonderful， immersive， beautifully tragic， and eloquent。 This is one that left an impression on me， one I will widely recommend， and it’s been added to my favorites list。 This book tells the story of seven women， who This is a book I wanted to make a home out of and never leave。 Sometimes books draw you in that way。 My copy is underlined， dog-eared， there are doodles and notes in the margin， and I savored every page when I wasn’t in a fast-paced story I couldn’t wait to see the ending of。 It was wonderful， immersive， beautifully tragic， and eloquent。 This is one that left an impression on me， one I will widely recommend， and it’s been added to my favorites list。 This book tells the story of seven women， who are victims of generational trauma。 I’ve already been familiar with the concept， but this book really portrayed the realities of how that feels， affects， and even controls these women’s lives。 There are horribly tragic moments that tear your heart to pieces， but there are moments of restoration， hope， healing， and love throughout。 This book has romantic poetic moments， as it explores philosophies and beliefs in a inner-connected way。 I was invested in every single story and character。 How often does that really happen in a book？ I loved every perspective。 There wasn’t a single one I wanted to rush through to get to the next， although Dorothy was my favorite and the most relatable for me。 I admire these women， their legacies， their resilience and perseverance， and their ardent desire to not give up or give in to their struggles or conflicts。 The ending is one of my favorite parts。 It’s so unexpected。 What could’ve been a heart-wrenching moment turned out to be redemptive， and it truly pulled the whole story together。 This book is a masterpiece， and one I’ll never forget。 The themes and messages in this book are so powerful and so many！ I felt myself enlightening， educated， encouraged， at peace， unsettled， disturbed， captivated， intrigued， and everything in between。 This is my first Jamie Ford novel， but it won’t be my last。 Wow， I wish I could read this for the first time again。 。。。more
Linda Powell
，
I absolutely loved this book。 Beautiful idea and so well executed。 About epegeneic memory。 Passing along trauma genetics。 I could read again。 Loved all of the women， the poetry running throughout， the buddhist ideas。 The sentences。 Beautiful book。
Sharon Elletson
，
"We have many lives。。。 but this life begins when we realize we only have one。"I went back through some old newspapers and found Afong Moy， and now I know who she was。 Thank you Jamie Ford for this imagined life。What a beautiful novel。 I was， for the most part， unfamiliar with epigenetics before I began reading this story， these stories。It asks the question， If you plant an acorn and it becomes an oak tree， has the acorn been reborn as a tree？ Or does it grow to be something else entirely？ My fri "We have many lives。。。 but this life begins when we realize we only have one。"I went back through some old newspapers and found Afong Moy， and now I know who she was。 Thank you Jamie Ford for this imagined life。What a beautiful novel。 I was， for the most part， unfamiliar with epigenetics before I began reading this story， these stories。It asks the question， If you plant an acorn and it becomes an oak tree， has the acorn been reborn as a tree？ Or does it grow to be something else entirely？ My friends will love this book， threaded with genetic trauma， complicated women， and Buddhist philosophy。 。。。more
Angie Deysach
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This book made no sense。 I guess that’s why I’m not a fantasy reader。 I don’t think this was fantasy 。 I thought the ending might give some satisfaction， but it didn’t。
Rachel Shaffer
，
If you can get past the inherited generational trauma it’s pretty good。
Melissa Browning
，
I don’t think everything ended up coming together for me in the end of this book， but I did enjoy reading about the different characters and their own storylines。
alyssa_cook5 Cook
，
I really enjoyed this！
Stephanie Daige
，
Did anyone else notice the oddity in the dates on the family tree？！？Are the dates supposed to be the years in which the women were born？ If so， how is it that Faye had Greta when she was 72？！ I find this highly unusual， and I was surprised that it was never explained in the book。 Also， in chapter 13， Greta specifically states that her grandmother， Zoe， got pregnant "late in life，" but the family tree says she had Faye when she was 15。 There is no mention of any child other than Faye， or pregnanc Did anyone else notice the oddity in the dates on the family tree？！？Are the dates supposed to be the years in which the women were born？ If so， how is it that Faye had Greta when she was 72？！ I find this highly unusual， and I was surprised that it was never explained in the book。 Also， in chapter 13， Greta specifically states that her grandmother， Zoe， got pregnant "late in life，" but the family tree says she had Faye when she was 15。 There is no mention of any child other than Faye， or pregnancy loss。 It even seemed to imply that she was childless before this "late in life" pregnancy。 The author seems to have done some research on the pseudoscience of epigenetics and on the historical context， so why does it seem he didn't do some simple arithmetic to construct a plausible family tree？ Am I missing something here？Overall， I enjoyed the book。 The concept was intriguing， and the stories were well told。 It was a bit hard to follow since it jumped around out of order between different characters and time periods。 In hindsight， I think it may have helped to have taken notes on each character。 It did， however， hold my interest， and kept me curious enough to keep going， even when it got confusing or depressing。 。。。more
Laurie
，
This is the story of the women in the Moy family。 It spans centuries starting in 1836 with Afong Moy all the way to 2086 with Annabel Moy。 Dorothy Moy （2045） is depressed and feeling like she doesn't belong。 She is experiencing vivid memories of lives she hasn't led。 Dorothy decides to undergo tratments in epiegenetics because she feels that her memories are connected to the women in her family。 Each treatment that Dorothy underoes gives the reader a look at the women in her family。 In these tre This is the story of the women in the Moy family。 It spans centuries starting in 1836 with Afong Moy all the way to 2086 with Annabel Moy。 Dorothy Moy （2045） is depressed and feeling like she doesn't belong。 She is experiencing vivid memories of lives she hasn't led。 Dorothy decides to undergo tratments in epiegenetics because she feels that her memories are connected to the women in her family。 Each treatment that Dorothy underoes gives the reader a look at the women in her family。 In these treatments Dorothy sees what happens to her ancesters， and she experiences their feelings of fear， wanting to belong and to be loved。I liked the book， but I didn't not love it。 I did like Ford's use of Dorothy's epigenetics treatments to give the reader a glimpse of Dorothy's ancestors， but I felt that Ford took the easy road to get to the climax。 His chapter called Echoes seems forced。 。。。more
Nikki Youngren
，
Very interesting story about several generations of a Chinese woman from the early 1800s through the late 2000s。 I really enjoyed each woman’s story but I’m not sure how I feel about the last part of the story and how the author tied the individual’s stories together。 But I wouldn’t let that keep me from recommending this book！
Hattie
，
Intriguing premise — following the epigenetic trail across seven generations of women—but I struggled to engage with this story。 I’ve enjoyed other Jamie Ford books but this one felt heavy handed。 I listened on audio; the narrators are excellent but I think with what this book is seeking to accomplish， or it would have been a better choice for me。
Debra
，