I have been wanting to read Yeonmi Park’s memoir In Order to Live ever since I saw her speech about her escape from North Korea in 2014. Even though China is the main focus of my life and work, I have written before about how closely entwined the history of North Korea and China are. And, come to Read More
Category: Book Reviews
3 Defectors – Memoirs from North Korea
Even though my main focus is China, I’m also very interested in what is going on in North Korea. I know that for most Americans, North Korea isn’t really on their radar, but here in China, the “hermit kingdom” can’t be ignored. Even though I mostly review books on this site that specifically deal with Read More
Book Review: Vermilion by Molly Tanzer
Vermilion by Molly Tanzer is an amazing book. It was the one I have spent years looking for. I read a crazy amount of mystery novels, but as I mentioned in my review of the Red Princess Mysteries by Lisa See, when it comes to historical mysteries, the protagonist is always the same – a white Read More
Book Review: The Moon in the Palace by Weina Dai Randel
I have been looking for a novelization about Empress Wu Zetian for a while. I gave Empress by Shan Sa a try, but it was god-awful. So I was very excited to come across The Moon in the Palace by Weina Dai Randel. About The Moon in the Palace There is no easy path for a Read More
Book Review – Soundless by Richelle Mead
Richelle Mead, the hugely successful author behind the Vampire Academy series, stepped into new territory this year with Soundless, a fantasy novel set an a China-inspired world. About Soundless For as long as Fei can remember, there has been no sound in her village, where rocky terrain and frequent avalanches prevent residents from self-sustaining. Fei Read More
Book Review – The Red Princess Mysteries by Lisa See
I read a lot of historical mystery books, but I got really tired of the same protagonist – a white widow of means. So when looking for a mystery with a non-white heroine, I came across Lisa See’s Red Princess Mysteries. While it isn’t exactly a historical series, the Red Princess Mysteries is a solid Read More
Book Review – Buy Me The Sky by Xinran
I am a big fan of Xinran’s books. It is still difficult to find female Chinese writers writing about women’s issues in China in English. While more Chinese women are taking up the pen regarding these issues, Xinran was one of the first. She was in China collecting women’s stories when many people in China Read More
Book Review: The Palest Ink by Kay Bratt
Check out my interview with Kay Bratt here. Be sure to read all the way to the end for a chance to win a copy of The Palest Ink. About The Palest Ink A sheltered son from an intellectual family in Shanghai, Benfu spends 1966 anticipating a promising violinist career and an arranged marriage. On Read More
Book Review: The Private Papers of Eastern Jewel by Maureen Lindley
The Private Papers of Eastern Jewel is a novelization of the life of Japanese spy Yoshiko Kawashima, who was also known as Eastern Jewel. While the book was interesting, it focused far too much on Yoshiko’s sexuality. The book’s description says: Peking, 1914. When the eight-year-old princess Eastern Jewel is caught spying on her father’s liaison Read More
Book Review: The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo
I recently finished reading The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo. It is a really fascinating book that I highly enjoyed and would recommend. The book’s description does not do the book justice. According to Amazon: Li Lan, the daughter of a respectable Chinese family in colonial Malaysia, hopes for a favorable marriage, but her father has Read More