Tonight I attended our RS book club. We read Wild Swans, a book I had recommended. To be honest, I was afraid the other ladies in the group wouldn't like it or wouldn't care about the subject matter. Boy was I wrong!! They all loved it. Although it was too long for most of the readers to finish in just one month, everyone had such great light bulb moments reading it. Most of the feedback from the ladies revolved around how little they knew about the Cultural Revolution or about Chinese History. So it was an eye-opening, learning experience for many. I wish there were more books out there that describe the experiences of those who lived through the Cultural Revolution. If you know of any, please let me know. (I've read "The Red Azalea" and didn't care for it too much.)
Next month we are going to read The Red Tent, which I am very much looking forward to.
Showing posts with label Book. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Book. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Book Giveaway
I have joined our Relief Society's book club. So far, I have not been too thrilled with the book selections. But I can't complain because the book we're reading for March is a book I recommended, "Wild Swans" by Jung Chang. I can't wait to discuss it with everyone.
One of the books we recently read was Marley and Me. It has been made into a movie. The author is a journalist by trade, so his writing was really good. However, I'm not an animal person (that's putting it lightly), so I didn't really care for the book. So I am more than happy to give this book to anyone who wants to read it. If you're interested, make a comment and I will mail it to you!!
One of the books we recently read was Marley and Me. It has been made into a movie. The author is a journalist by trade, so his writing was really good. However, I'm not an animal person (that's putting it lightly), so I didn't really care for the book. So I am more than happy to give this book to anyone who wants to read it. If you're interested, make a comment and I will mail it to you!!
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wild Swans
I just finished reading "Wild Swans" by Jung Chang. Shelley sent me this book for Christmas and I've really enjoyed reading it. It's a little long, but parts of it are so appallingly interesting I just couldn't stop reading. It's about 3 generations of Chinese women and their struggles with growing up in China. The first part of the book talks about the grandmother's story and how she lived in Manchuria when the Japanese had occupied China and how miserable her life was. She had bound feet and was a concubine until her 'spouse' died. What do you call the 'owner' of a concubine? ...that's appropriate to say out loud, that is. The struggles of the time included a lack of food, people were forced to work hard and long hours and punishments for disobedience were...severe.
The mother grew up in a time where the Kuomintang and Communism were at odds. Eventually, as Communism took over, she became an official in her region. It was so interesting to read about the realities of Communism and the trials of living under a dictator. In the late 1970's, the Cultural Revolution came about and high-ranking Communist officials were punished....for being high ranking. Chairman Mao (and his wife) felt that peasants were more obedient because they weren't smart enough to question his authority. He wanted a nation full of people who depended on him. He also felt that when people were in conflict, they were more reliant on him as a leader. So he instigated various ridiculous rules and movements that stirred up a lot of conflict. Due to Mao's authorization, a lot of intelligent people were tortured by government-authorized "rebels" because they were teachers, land owners, officials in the Communist party etc. The rebels felt that in order to prove their loyalty to Chairman Mao and his various 'movements', they tortured the previous government officials and generally frightened people into submission.
The one I really can't get over is how Chairman Mao, during a famine, came to detest swallows because they would eat all of the precious grain. He therefore made everyone (kids and adults) go outside and bang pots and pans to keep the birds from landing in trees so they would eventually drop dead out of exhaustion.
As the daughter's account of her life unfolds, I came to realize how lucky I am to live in the US where we have simple freedoms that go unchallenged. The daughter, Jung Chang, eventually learned English and when she read the Declaration of Independence for the first time, she was struck with the concept of inalienable rights...life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. She memorized the entire Declaration of Independence.
When I think of the atrocities that took place under Mao's rule, I can't help but think that the same thing must be going on in North Korea and other places right now. We know so little about North Korea and what's happening to those people. It just can't be good.
I ordered another book by the same author off of Amazon.com hoping to take it with me to China. When it arrived, I was saddened to learn that it's about 700 pages long--not good for throwing in a backpack to go places.
Anyway, thank you for reading my book report.
The mother grew up in a time where the Kuomintang and Communism were at odds. Eventually, as Communism took over, she became an official in her region. It was so interesting to read about the realities of Communism and the trials of living under a dictator. In the late 1970's, the Cultural Revolution came about and high-ranking Communist officials were punished....for being high ranking. Chairman Mao (and his wife) felt that peasants were more obedient because they weren't smart enough to question his authority. He wanted a nation full of people who depended on him. He also felt that when people were in conflict, they were more reliant on him as a leader. So he instigated various ridiculous rules and movements that stirred up a lot of conflict. Due to Mao's authorization, a lot of intelligent people were tortured by government-authorized "rebels" because they were teachers, land owners, officials in the Communist party etc. The rebels felt that in order to prove their loyalty to Chairman Mao and his various 'movements', they tortured the previous government officials and generally frightened people into submission.
The one I really can't get over is how Chairman Mao, during a famine, came to detest swallows because they would eat all of the precious grain. He therefore made everyone (kids and adults) go outside and bang pots and pans to keep the birds from landing in trees so they would eventually drop dead out of exhaustion.
As the daughter's account of her life unfolds, I came to realize how lucky I am to live in the US where we have simple freedoms that go unchallenged. The daughter, Jung Chang, eventually learned English and when she read the Declaration of Independence for the first time, she was struck with the concept of inalienable rights...life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. She memorized the entire Declaration of Independence.
When I think of the atrocities that took place under Mao's rule, I can't help but think that the same thing must be going on in North Korea and other places right now. We know so little about North Korea and what's happening to those people. It just can't be good.
I ordered another book by the same author off of Amazon.com hoping to take it with me to China. When it arrived, I was saddened to learn that it's about 700 pages long--not good for throwing in a backpack to go places.
Anyway, thank you for reading my book report.
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