book, 5 stars  this was mandatory read for my World Literature @ Rowan University.  The reason why this book was a straight up five stars is because this was the book that opened up my mind to Communist China at the time that Moa ruled it.  It fascinated me beyond my understanding, not that I turned communist…hahah…but because i started saturating myself with the history beginning from precommunism to the death of Mao.  I memorized dates, timelines, political strategies, historical places, conflicts, and the country’s changing sentiment.  This book began the next string of books that i read for leisure concerning Communist China, and even preCommunist china.  It also opened my semi-dormant interest in movies that dealt with the same history. It was a great opening book to how women strived in China at that time as well.  The book is told by a first person narrative.  It serves as an autobiographical novel of Anchee Min’s experiences from when she was a teenager, under a societal false consciousness during the cultural revolution headed by Mao’s mistress.  It was a deep disturbing book…but really awakened a great interest in me…so much so that i still get stopped at B&N when i […]

after reading Red Azalea, i quickly went to B&N and bought myself this copy to add to my Anchee Min collection.  I had grown more interest in the woman behind Min’s small character in Red Azalea, but one of the greatest roles in communist china when Mao ruled- Madame Mao.  She was commissioned to lead the cultural revolution when Mao’s political tactics had feigned and digressed.  she stimulated the youth of china to strictly follow the ideals of  Mao and become their “gestapo,” turning in everyone who was nonproletariat.  This novel is based on real historical figures, but Min had to try to write in order to comply with history, even though she herself was not in an omnipotent viewpoint.  But she tried to capture the life and dynamics of this great female figure who had such raging passions equalling even her male counterparts. The story reads very quickly enough, and captures interest easily, so, if you want a great book and want to know this woman, pick it up…good time…

book, 5 stars wow. i am a fan of this book.  i always recommend this book to all of my friends…at one point, i bought this book for all my suitemates, and there were lots of us living there… the book succeeds because it conveys the universal importance of friendship.  it’s highly imaginative, yet pertains to certain truths about the silliness of humanity sometimes, that we need it to be pointed out through the eyes of innocence. it was a very emotional book for me, and i’m proud to say that i am not alone.  one of the roomates i gave this to even cried as i did at one part of the book. usually, this is recommended to children, but i believe they won’t fully comprehend its deepness, but it does serve to teach children the importance of imagination, and the priorities in life that are usually overlooked.  so if you’re 10, 16, 25, or 50+ do read the book…it even has pictures!

book, 4 stars this is told by first person, a Zimbabwean mother writing a letter to her daughter who is to study abroad in Harvard. she tells her stories of people around her, each having specific lessons that will enrich and encourage her daughter while she is away from home.  she realizes that her daughter is of a different thread than she is, because she is very isolated within her comfort, but through her stories, we see that her mother is of a stronger thread, because she has gained insight from the people around her…esp. the way she learns about life, freedom, love, family, and education…hopefully all passed down to her daughter.  she retells stories from Zenzele’s grandmother, her rebellious sister who fights against colonization, people who left Zimbabwe, and her own struggles she’s endured. it’s a story mainly about survival and hope…through love, through education, and through keeping one’s cultural integrity, because you were not born out of an isolated story, but born to continue history.  good emotional book. i recommend this book to a lot of older siblings or parents who want to impart wisdom to someone who is younger and is at the commencement of leaving for […]

 book, 3.5 stars published in 1954, this book noted the changing times in India after their independence from Britain’s colonization.  mainly, this was a story of a woman who married into a low strata, a man of agriculture, who rented a piece of land to till.  They eventually suffered great loss, in wealth, in family, and in health due to natural infertility of their land.  they lived through the changing society of agriculture to industry, from agricultural town to insensitive city industry.  this book did only one thing for me, it taught me the importance of “hope”, because despite all misfortune, pain, and hardship, they wouldn’t have been able to endure anything and persevere if they didn’t have hope.  hope strung their days together, and glued their strength in each other. 

book, 1 star man, i really didn’t like this story. it was as if the narrator was a robot.  i realize he’s known for being an “exit author” who doesn’t let his influence show, but i felt as if he was just describing a piece of art without a soul. the story was such a disappointment.  i’m not gonna go into the conclusion, but when you think the story builds up and will ultimately have a worthy ending, it won’t.

Ethan Frome was published 1911, the story set in a small town of New England.  the plot is fairly simple.  there is Ethan, who supposedly stayed for “too many Starkfield winters.”  he married his cousin who had taken care of his sick mother, and who eventually and ironically ended up being “sickly” herself (from hypochondria).  he ends up falling in love with mattie, the cousin and help of Zenna (his wife).  There are turns of events, and psychological decisions, manipulations, and conniving motivation hidden within each character, even the narrator.  This is what adds further dimension to the intriguing love and power triangle. i gave the book a 3.5 because i didn’t think it was exceptional in comparison to other books i’ve read, but it has been my favorite so far in my American Literature 1865-1914 class.  it also has a lot of perspectives you can take, whether in gender or social classification. plus, talk about unrequited love.