How the past can affect us beyond comprehension..... (The Bonesetter's Daughter - Amy Tan)

Member Name: lonestarsky

Product:	The Bonesetter's Daughter - Amy Tan
Date:	20/07/09 (65 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great story, great characters, beautifully written

Disadvantages: None for me

I'd never heard of Amy Tan until I was given this book by a friend who was sure I would enjoy it. I've since found out that she's written a few books and I hope to read them all, because if this book is anything to go by, they're all going to be brilliant. I found this book very difficult to put down. It has such a lovely simplistic yet realistic writing style that really brings the story to life.

The book starts with a prologue from the point of view of LuLing Young, an elderly Chinese woman whose health and memory is starting to fade. In order to remember as much as she can about her childhood in China she decides to write everything down. In particular she refers a lot to "Precious Auntie", her nursemaid to whom she was close to as a child and whose subsequent death has haunted LuLing to the present day.

The book then changes to third person, and is told from the point of view of Ruth, LuLing's daughter. Ruth is in her 40s and is a ghost writer of self -help books. She lives with her partner Art and his two teenage daughters. Their relationship has been reasonably happy but now Ruth isn't so sure, and on top of that she is concerned about her mother's failing memory. This section jumps about in time, but isn't confusing in any way. We see what sort of a childhood and adolescence Ruth had; growing up with a difficult mother who has never fully adapted to a new culture, frequently threatens suicide and is obsessed with trying to contact the ghosts of her past and deal with the curse she believes is bestowed upon her family. Rather than make LuLing seem all bad though, there are some touching moments when her love and pride for her daughter clearly show though.

Ruth decides that she wants her mother's memoirs translated so that she can hopefully learn to understand her better. Therefore the next section follows on from the prologue, and gives a fascinating account of LuLing's early life in the village of "Immortal Heart" in China - her close relationship with Precious Auntie and the events leading to Precious Auntie's death, the revelations LuLing finds in a letter Precious Auntie left her, her relationship with her sister GaoLing, her first marriage, and her move from China to America. I loved this part of the story because along with Ruth we are learning how her mother came to be the person she is and why. It also paints a wonderful picture if life in China for a woman in China during the 1920s to 1950s - a world away from anything we could imagine.

This section also talks about "bonesetters" which is where the title of the novel comes from. Precious Aunties father was a bonesetter - in other words a herbalist who would search for "dragon bones" and use them as a means of healing people.

LuLing initially came across as prickly and irritating in the earlier section from Ruth's point of view. I also found it easier to identify with Ruth, mainly as she is a western woman, but having found out about LuLing's background it became easier to appreciate why she was the way she was, and to appreciate her as a person. The contrasts between her earlier life and Ruth's life are excellently portrayed.

The final section reverts back to Ruth, who is now living with her mother in an effort to help care for her. However there is one vital part of her mother's story that is missing, something that would mean a lot to both Ruth and LuLing. Ruth wonders if her mother will recall it before her memory gets too bad and it is forgotten forever.

This book is dark in places but there are a few wonderfully touching moments and even some mildly humorous moments.

I loved this book because I love stories about family history and family secrets. This book illustrates how the past works on us and how it makes us who we are. It reminds us that family relationships can be good and bad at times and how its easy to make assumptions about people without really knowing why they are the way they are. The characters are all realistic and it was so easy to feel for them and their situations. I shared in Ruth's frustration and worry for her mother but at the same time felt for LuLing, especially after reading her back story and learning more about her and the burden of guilt she has had to carry since leaving China.

This is a book about family relationships, cultural divides and how the past works on us - not just our past but the past of those closest to us. I would highly recommend it and I look forward to reading another book by Amy Tan.

Summary: Highly recommended