Do You like book The Language Of Threads (2000)?
I think I would have like this better if my expectations had not been so high, but after reading Tsukiyama's "Samurai's Garden," her "Language of Threads" was a disappointment. It is set in pre War II and then during WW II Hong Kong but there is not much subtlety here - it is Japanese Devils versus the Chinese. The protagonist is a silk worker and I craved more information about this interesting dying profession - there were hints about the silk sisterhood and the vows of the silk sisterhood but not enough information. The characters were fairly flat with little nuance and almost no motivation shown for their feelings and actions. I really did not care much about what happened to the characters - partly because it was so predictable and partly because they were so flatly drawn.
—Diane
The enduring strength of family ties, the deep bonds of sisterhood, the power of women to survive in a harsh world and grief over the loss of love that abides til death, are all themes woven into the continuing tale of Pei, a Chinese girl from a poor family. The first part of her story is told in "Women of the Silk" and this book picks up there and follows her through WWII in Hong Kong and up through 1973 when she seems to be in her 60's. It could be a stand alone book however. Though the girls lead difficult lives, often depending on their wits, courage and perseverance to survive, they also seemed charmed at times by incredibly good fortune. But who hasn't had some remarkable thing occur just at the right moment in time? The author has favorite phrases she uses a little too often for me, eg: "stinking night soil", "shoveling night soil", "dumping night soil", ad nauseum. Her writing style is clear and even somewhat detached, but I didn't know how much I was emotionally involved until I experienced tears over the final goodbyes.
—Liz
This book was part of a large number of books I received as a friend was clearing out her books. I suspect I would find it even more immersive if I had read the first book in the series, but it is the kind of intriguing historical piece that has enough fact and major historical events to remain realistic, with the interaction of expectation and social more at the the time, but coupled with interesting characters and unexpected events to engage far more than a cold recitation of history can. I was a little concerned it was going to become yet another story of how a white person saved the day, but saving was spread all over the place in various ways, and loss and redemption were hand in hand at many points of the book. The language was clear and simple, the narrative tugs like fast moving water, and the story leads to unexpected places. I was pleased with this book.
—phaedra lewis