Snow Flower and the Secret Fan: A Novel

Great book, I'm very interested in the Asian point of view, glimpse of life during WWII. I'm thinking I want to visit the Orient soon. This is a great book. READ it! Interesting culture. I know little of Chinese 19th century customs, but was compelled to research as I read this book. Sometimes you just have to stop and thank God we were born in the USA...or maybe I'm still thinking of...more

Great book, I'm very interested in the Asian point of view, glimpse of life during WWII. I'm thinking I want to visit the Orient soon. This is a great book. READ it! Interesting culture. I know little of Chinese 19th century customs, but was compelled to research as I read this book. Sometimes you just have to stop and thank God we were born in the USA...or maybe I'm still thinking of Bruce during the half-time show... Good book and thanks Shelley for suggesting it! :-)   hide

(26/50) I picked this up at the recommendation of some reviews I had read here on Goodreads. I really didn't know what to expect, but as I really enjoyed "Memoirs of a Geisha" and moderately enjoyed "Snow Country" (which I am now planning on re-reading), I thought I would enjoy this book. I am also fascinated with Asian culture and have found myself drawn to books like...more

(26/50) I picked this up at the recommendation of some reviews I had read here on Goodreads. I really didn't know what to expect, but as I really enjoyed "Memoirs of a Geisha" and moderately enjoyed "Snow Country" (which I am now planning on re-reading), I thought I would enjoy this book. I am also fascinated with Asian culture and have found myself drawn to books like that anyway.This book (to me) was AMAZING. I really enjoyed how the author wrote this story. I could feel myself feeling Lily's grief and happiness and also her anger (though I saw things as they were, not as she saw them), which to me was amazing.The foot-binding was horrible to read about, but also very informative. I KNEW of foot-binding of course, but I really didn't know HOW they did it (I DO now) and how excruciating painful it is to the person it is happening to. Also, it wasn't completely banned in China until 1951. WOW!I loved the story of Lily and Snow Flower. How they are brought together and how they grow together, even in the midst of really different circumstances. And I can see how things happened to make the end as sad as it was. I have a friend who I have been friends with since I was in 1st grade (MANY MANY years ago) and we are "estranged" and reading this book just made me sad all over again for my friend and how we cannot be together right now (because of the choices she has made and continues to make, despite my outreach to her)and how I miss her and our talks and such. The book gives me hope. Hope that we will too find our way back to each other. I highly recommend this book. What an amazing read![read 3/9-11/08]   hide

An amazing description of the life of a woman in Confucian pre-Mao China with a convincing and easy to read story line. It includes often graphic descriptions of the physical suffering of women in 19th century China including and excruciating recounting of the experience of foot-binding and physical abuse by husbands. Based around a secret writing between women in provincial China, the novel...more

An amazing description of the life of a woman in Confucian pre-Mao China with a convincing and easy to read story line. It includes often graphic descriptions of the physical suffering of women in 19th century China including and excruciating recounting of the experience of foot-binding and physical abuse by husbands. Based around a secret writing between women in provincial China, the novel traces the life of two women linked by a special Confucian bind linking the lives of close female friends. It was enlightening for me to read about this period since most of what I've read about China relates to the Revolution or its aftermath. My disappointment at what seemed like unnecessary soap-opera-style melodrama at the end did not detract from my overall enjoyment of a well-written novel.   hide

This book was one I picked up because I am fascinated by the older Chinese culture. Reading it was amazing! The characters came to life for me and I was absolutely moved by the lives of women back in those times. Ultimately, this book is about friendship and all that can go wrong in life and how the relationship between friends can be tried and remain in spite of misunderstandings and perceived...more

This book was one I picked up because I am fascinated by the older Chinese culture. Reading it was amazing! The characters came to life for me and I was absolutely moved by the lives of women back in those times. Ultimately, this book is about friendship and all that can go wrong in life and how the relationship between friends can be tried and remain in spite of misunderstandings and perceived betrayals. Since so much happens to these women, you might be inclined to put it down, but hang in there, it's a good read.   hide

While I myself don't have a strong affinity for Chinese culture, stories about the women of China often tear my heart to pieces. This book was absolutely beautiful, written with a fluidity which is hard to find these days. While it isn't a long book, it took me a while to finish; the story being so beautifully told is one that really makes you feel for the characters. One of the things I...more

While I myself don't have a strong affinity for Chinese culture, stories about the women of China often tear my heart to pieces. This book was absolutely beautiful, written with a fluidity which is hard to find these days. While it isn't a long book, it took me a while to finish; the story being so beautifully told is one that really makes you feel for the characters. One of the things I disliked, however, is also what contributes to the beauty of the story; the subservience expected of women. As a strong feminist, reading this book was especially difficult. It made me appreciate the fact that, while our society still doesn't treat women as equals to men, I am able to change my conditions. I have control of my life. A truly amazing book.   hide

A fascinating glimpse into the world of women living in a province of China during the 19th century. Relegated to the upstairs "women's realm", their feet were painfully bound at approximately age 6 to make them more appealing for a good marriage match. Considered too unimportant to educate, the women of Jiangyong province created the only lanaguage in history developed solely by and for women. ...more

A fascinating glimpse into the world of women living in a province of China during the 19th century. Relegated to the upstairs "women's realm", their feet were painfully bound at approximately age 6 to make them more appealing for a good marriage match. Considered too unimportant to educate, the women of Jiangyong province created the only lanaguage in history developed solely by and for women. Printed onto fans or embroidered onto fabric, the women were thus able to communicate secretly with each other. It is, at heart however, a story of a lifelong friendship between two women, beginning when they were pledged to one another at age 7. Defintely a book to add to your list of eventual reads.   hide

WOW, what can I say? This was recommended to me and I read it. However, while well researched, the voice of Lily is not as authentic as other heroines in other books by contemporary Chinese female authors like Maxine Hong Kingston and Amy Tan. While Lisa See is only 25% Chinese, I feel the lack of personal experience with her heritage culture really puts her at a disadvantage. The writing...more

WOW, what can I say? This was recommended to me and I read it. However, while well researched, the voice of Lily is not as authentic as other heroines in other books by contemporary Chinese female authors like Maxine Hong Kingston and Amy Tan. While Lisa See is only 25% Chinese, I feel the lack of personal experience with her heritage culture really puts her at a disadvantage. The writing comes across as stilted and I felt at times I was reading an essay on footbiniding or nu shu. There is a even a gratuitous lesbian sex scene that made me react "trite and cliche." Give me a break. I do not recommend this book at all. If you are interested in reading contemporary fiction about Chinese women, start with the Joy Luck Club and Kitchen's God Wife both by Amy Tan. Lisa See gets two stars for effort.   hide

Besides the culture of foot binding which she describes in such detail it made me realize that us women need relationships with each other. Our meaningful friendships are not just superficial, we need the moral and humane support from each other all our lives. It shows that when we project our societal pressures into a genuine friendship it dissolves all that was shared before. The person who...more

Besides the culture of foot binding which she describes in such detail it made me realize that us women need relationships with each other. Our meaningful friendships are not just superficial, we need the moral and humane support from each other all our lives. It shows that when we project our societal pressures into a genuine friendship it dissolves all that was shared before. The person who describes female circumcision in a similar manner one day ( if it has not been done before) will reveal the depth of the suffering of women who have undergone that process.   hide

The book takes us through the lives of two chinese women in the 19th century. They become laotangs early in their life and go through their feet-binding, loss of siblings, weddings, loss of children, and other life experiences of women in 19th century China. Through all these years, bound to their homes by the binding on their feet, they maintain communication with each other by communicating in...more

The book takes us through the lives of two chinese women in the 19th century. They become laotangs early in their life and go through their feet-binding, loss of siblings, weddings, loss of children, and other life experiences of women in 19th century China. Through all these years, bound to their homes by the binding on their feet, they maintain communication with each other by communicating in nushu-the "secret" language of Chinese men.Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is a fantastic read about friendship and the changes brought upon it by changing circumstances. Crafted very cleverly by the author, the book is impossible to put down once picked up.   hide