Dreams of Joy

Novel by Lisa See

I don't know what it is about me right now, but I keep reading books that I start out thinking, "Meh" and then they creep up and grab me! Maybe it's that my attention is being pulled in so many other directions (new baby...new school year...new kindergartener). But man, this book started kind of slow and then bam, grabbed me. 

Lisa See is one of those authors whose books I always read. I haven't loved them all, but I read them all because the great ones (Dragon Bones, Snowflower and the Secret Fan) are worth slogging through the just-ok-ones (Peony in Love). Her writing style is very clear, bordering on obvious, and sometimes a little repetitive. You always know everything a character is thinking and feeling, even when it's not entirely consistent with the image you have of them. But that also makes them very real, and pretty relatable. And she writes about ancient China or Chinese immigrants, which means I learn about another culture or time. Love it. 

Dreams of Joy is a sequel to Shanghai Girls. I think the book started slow for me because it incorporates some review of the previous book (which I've read) at the beginning.  But I also really like that DoJ picks up THE MINUTE SH leaves off. You don't get many sequels that do that. Also, the narration of the story is shared between a mother and daughter, and as both a mom to a girl and as an adult daughter, I appreciated the nuances of the relationship. The book takes place in the late 1950's, as Joy, the daughter, finds out some nasty family secrets and runs away to find her biological father in what has become Communist China. Joy's mom follows and the two live in China for a few years, through the highs and lows of the new government and society. The experiences Joy has while living in a farming commune are really what grabbed me about this book, plus the relationships that Pearl rekindles in the city where she grew up.  Then the story intensifies during a famine and becomes almost unbelievable, including something called "swap child, make food." But I Googled it--it's historical. It's horrible, but very engrossing. 

I like to think that books like this can make me a better teacher of history, but honestly, I teach middle school--it's not really going to get this detailed.  Maybe I understand more of the general ebb and flow of world history and culture. But mostly, I love the characters, how their culture has shaped them, the surprising ways that people like Joy and Pearl can change.  And I'm a sucker for a happy ending.

Next up: The Book of Bright Ideas by Sandra Kring or Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo (time to mix it up with some non-fiction).