2012 Book 4: Shanghai Girls

Shanghai Girls by Lisa See is a historical novel about two sisters who end up immigrating from China to America in the 1930's. It is a glimpse into what it would have been like to be an immigrant of Asiatic descent during a difficult period. 

Ultimately it is the story of two sisters who love each other and support one another through some very difficult times in their lives. They deal with jealousy and betrayal as well as an undying loyalty to one another. It is a good read, though difficult at times.

Excerpts from the book:

"An educated woman is a worthless woman." – Confucius

We may look and act modern in many ways, but we can't escape what we are: obedient Chinese daughters.

I thought I was modern. I thought I had a choice. I thought I was nothing like my mother. But my father's gamblings has swept all that away. I am to be sold – traded like so many girls before me – to help my family. I feel so trapped and so helpless that I can hardly breathe.

In Shanghai, life flows like an endlessly serene river for the wealthy, the lucky, the fortunate. For those with bad fates, the smell of desperation is as strong as a rotting corpse.

Maybe we are all like that with our mothers. They seem ordinary until one day they are extraordinary.

"There is no catastrophe except death; one cannot be poorer than a beggar."

So often we're told that women's stories are unimportant. After all, what does it matter what happens in the main room, in the kitchen, or in the bedroom? Who cares about the relationships between mother, daughter, and sister? ...We're told that men are strong and brave, but I think women know how to endure, accept defeat, and bear physical, and mental agony much better than men.