The Joy Luck Club

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Summary: A Chinese-American must-read
Review: Written from the point of view of a true Chinese born American, Amy Tan reveals the reality about immigrating to a new country and living amongst diverse cultures in the book The Joy Luck Club. Four separate stories twist around each other about four girls and their mothers who came from China's hardships a couple of years back. The four mothers met through weekly games of mahjong, gossiping and sharing their unique stories with each other. As each realized how many times they could have lost hope, they named their weekly visits "The Joy Luck Club". Tan unravels each family secret deliberately, making each one different, but just as sophisticated. She portrays the difficulty each girl goes through as they struggle from the grasps of their culture and tradition to become an American.
Born as a Chinese-American myself, there are times when I feel like I can never fit in perfectly anywhere. With English constantly at the tip of my tongue, I'm taken as a foreigner in Asian countries. However, in any Western country, my black hair and dark eyes Asian features immediately reveals my identity. Through Tan's book, I have a new perception that living a diverse life means keeping an open heart to fit into foreign cultures, but to never abandon our own traditions. I can celebrate Christmas, the Fourth of July, speak English, and listen to American pop singers, but I must not ever forget how to speak, read, or write my Chinese dialect, the Lunar calendar and it's wonderful holidays.
Tan wrote beautifully, being incredibly sensitive with her descriptions of the contrast between two very different cultures. Those who are open-minded to our diverse world would thrive inside these stories. Those with mixed backgrounds would be filled with complete understanding. Those who are Chinese born American must pick up this book sometime along their own path.

Rating:
Summary: Simplistic Writing Style, Important and Powerful Issues.
Review: The Joy Luck Club is a classic book in Twentieth Century American Literature, and Asain-American literature. It follows the lives of four Chinese women in China during the 40's as well as their American-born daughters in California a generation later. The characters are Suyuan Woo and her daughter Jing-mei (who goes by "June"), An-mei Hsu and her daughter Rose Hsu Jordan, Lindo Jong and her daughter Waverly, and Ying-ying St. Clair and her daughter Lena. It is almost like a book of short stories, because each woman (and daughter) takes a turn or two at telling a story from her life. Each story eventually connects with other stories, but they can also be read alone and make complete sense. Four stories are grouped into one category, so they all are placed into fitting themes. The first grouping is under "Feathers From a Thousand Li Away", and deal with the mother's stories of living in China. The next is "The Twenty-Six Malignant Gates", in which the daughters are introduced and each speaks about her life as an Asian-American, and how each incorporates the legends, stories, and tradition of their mother's countries with modern life in their own. The third grouping is "American Translation", which delves furhter into the complications of living in two worlds at once. The last grouping is "Queen Mother of the Western Skies" and deals with issues of aging and the loss of innocence.

Tan's writing style is quite simplistic but the issues she addresses are important and deep. During the reading of this book one can grasp the contrasts between China and America, and can sense the problems and excitement of a Chinese mother raising an American daughter in a completely different environment than that in which she grew up, as well as being that Asain-American daughter. Another theme addressed in this book is that of mother-daughter relationships. All the relationships in this book are strained, and the women involved misunderstand and misinterpret one another because of the cultural differences even though they have genetic similarities.

I am glad I read this famous and often-talked-about book, however the writing style was so simple and the plots so easy to follow that I wish I had read it earlier. I think it would be a good book for teenagers, but if you are an adult who has never read it, I also recommend it to you. The issues addressed within it are timeless and thought-provoking.

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Summary: The Joy Luck Club-A Review
Review: The Joy Luck Club written by Amy Tan (also the author of The Hundred Secret Senses) is an entertaining novel of four Chinese mothers and four Chinese American daughters. All the mothers get together to play Mah-jongg and talk about their Chinese lives. While the daughters try and forget that they are Chinese. Only until each daughter experiences problems where only their mother can be the one to offer advice do they really appreciate their heritage.

The Joy Luck Club's short stories fit together well and each one has a meaning to think about. I found myself actually thinking of what each story meant and how it could relate to my life. However, I do not know how authentic the novel represents the Chinese culture because I do not know very much about their culture. I gave this book a 4 because it is well written and has moral value, however it did drag on in parts. If you would like to read a book about mothers and daughters that has value I would suggest The Joy Luck Club.

Rating:
Summary: The Game Of Friendship
Review: The four winds may change direction, and histories may shift at any given moment, but Amy Tan's, 'The Joy Luck Club' remains a captivating tale about four mothers and their four daughters.
The Chinese game Mah-jong works to join the mother's together as they form the club and share the secrets and tragedies of their lives as well as their hopes and dreams for their daughters. The women in this novel struggle to bestow their daughters with the virtues of Chinese traditions and at points seem to go too far-pitting their daughters against each other and sadly living their lives through them.
Tan writes both honestly and sensitively examining the generation gap between mothers and their daughters as well as the struggles migrants face when joining other countries. 'The Joy Luck Club' belongs to a genre which can only be described as realistic with characters which are both three dimensional and relatable.
The story is written through defined chapters-each dedicated to either a mother or a daughter; as they weave their histories and spin their stories.
The novel, through this chapter fragmentation allows each character to develop, with an emphasis on the main narrative- the death of one of the members of the club. The death of Suyuan Woo results in the incorporation of her daughter Jung Mei 'June' Woo into the group. June realises her mother- who died suddenly of a cerebral aneurysm - had unfinished business which leads June to face one of the biggest tragedies in her mother's life. 'The Joy Luck Club' is an inspiring novel which is moving both moving and courageous-a definite pleasure to read.

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Summary: An amazing story with one beautiful theme
Review: Back in Freshman year there was a short story in my 9th grade English anthology by Amy Tan. It was called The Rules of the Game. It was a great story to break into high school with because I really enjoyed it. Now I've finally had the chance to read where the story came from and I was defiantly entertained. The Joy luck club is a beautiful book with one theme, the relationship between mothers and daughters and the joys and strengths that they share. The narration's jumps between four mothers and their daughters. Real life in China and modern day life in the US. Each story has it's own plot and resolution. Weather it's a young girl in China forced to marry in an arranged marriage when she was only 12. Or a young wanna be prodigy trying to live up to her mothers expectations. There are stories about going through a divorce, living with a concubine for a mother, dealing with your mothers death, or finding secret strengths inside of yourself you never know existed.

I was very impressed with this book. My favorite stories being Waverly's and June's. Every page is entertaining and it's actually even taught me a little about Chinese culture. Everyone who's a mother or a daughter should defiantly read this book. I'm defiantly going to pick up another book by Amy Tan. The Hundred Secret Senses is on my shelf waiting to be read.

Rating:
Summary: The Joy Luck Club
Review: This story is about four close mother's with four different daughters. The mother's tell about their struggles they had when they were younger and the daughters tell about their struggles now. The mother's stories always have a meaning for being told and it usually is brought about by their daughter's actions. It basically compares the mother's lives that they have lived, the Chinese way, to their daughters who were brought up the American way. The stories that are told are very heartfelt and tender. You feel like you are there in China dealing with the war and bombing; and then in San Francisco trying to deal with a job and a husband. For me, since I am a girl, it was very easy to relate to the hardships that the younger women felt towards their mothers. It made me sort of realize that a lot of girls don't get along with their mothers; yet it also taught me to deal with things in a different way - for the better. This book was exceptional and inspirational and it will be the one book that I read again and again. I personally don't enjoy to read but this book I absolutely loved!

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Summary: Adrian's Book Review of The Joy Luck Club
Review: This is an amazing book, breaks all emotional boundries. After reading this book I have become an instant Amy Tan fan for life. This book really gives an insightful look on how it is for a Chinese immagrant trying to make it to America during that time of tragedy. As a young reader I reccommend this book to my fellow pears of any race. ("") (^_^) ("")

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Summary: Unintelligent, Sentimental, Ugly
Review: If you dislike those little sentimental poems found in gift cards, then don't read this book! Amy Tan has resorted to some very cheap tactics, no doubt unwittingly, brainwashed as she must be, to write this "human interest" tale that is artless as it is banal. A bunch of women bawl about their financial situation, and freak out when their daughters have their periods. This is already pretty uninteresting, but because they are Chinese it is suddenly a "marginalized narrative." In the end, the Chinese immigrant experience is cheapened and exploited. Ms. Tan deserves some kind of humiliating haircut for writing this book.

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Summary: The Joy Luck Club
Review: The Joy Luck Club looks at the complex relationships between mothers and daughters. Amy Tan tells the stories of four Chinese women tring to raise American daughters. Each mother wants her daughter to have all of the values of Chinese women with the freedoms of American women. The individual stroies of each woman is not only interesting, but gives insite as to how she raises her daughter. I highly recomend this book because of heart wrenching stories that each mother tells about her childhood. I also enjoy the way her adult daughter relates the srory to her own relationship with her mother.

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Summary: A Club All Its Own
Review: The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, is a mesmerizing novel that leads the reader on a journey to remember. The novel interweaves the stories of four mothers and their daughters. Each chapter brings a new life to learn about, touching the heart in a different way every time. The author wants to leave the reader with a new outlook on the hardship one had to take to come to America. The relationship between mothers and daughters is also a strong theme in the novel. Although the changing of narrators may become a bit confusing, the novel still captures the reader with its entertaining characters and stories that lift the soul.

The novel is set in America in the present, but many of the stories are told about years past. Several of the stories talk about a time during the war between China and Japan and the people that fled their homes and country. Once in America they began new and better lives with their families. The daughters that grew up in America do not appreciate what their parents, especially their mothers, did for them. This generation gap between them causes frustration and anger for both the mothers and daughters throughout the novel.

The story begins with the character Jing-Mei Woo, whose mother recently passed away. She now has been asked to take her mother's place in the Joy Luck Club, a group of four women who bonded after leaving China, each for their own reason. Jing-Mei Woo describes the group, "They are young girls again, dreaming of good times in the past and good times yet to come" (41). Each new story is told by either a mother or a daughter about something important that has either already happened or is happening in their life. One of the mothers, Lindo Jong, tells the story of how she escaped her planned marriage and fled China to come to America. She explains how she felt after becoming free, "How nice it is to be that girl again, to take off my scarf, to see what is underneath"(66). One of the daughters, Lena St. Clair, tells the story of how her brother drowned when she was young. The stories continue, each more excellent than the last, until the end. The last story is told, once again, by Jing-Mei Woo about how she granted a special wish to her deceased mother.

The Joy Luck Club was a pure joy to read because of its entertaining characters, heart touching stories, and the special theme of mother-daughter relationships. Each chapter introduced a new life to learn about, which kept the novel enjoyable to read at all times. This changing of narrators did become a bit confusing; having to look back and remember which character is which. Other than that, each new person brought their own personality and story to tell, making the reader feel as if he/she were meeting a whole new group of friends. By the end of the book, the reader knows each character intimately. The book achieves its goal of having the reader learn about the heroic ordeal of immigration, through the detailed stories the women tell about leaving China to make better lives for their families. Several of the stories open the reader's mind to the heartache and turmoil the women had to go through to come to America. The work the mothers did so their daughters would have lives is not appreciated however. A large generation gap between the mothers from China and their American daughters is very evident in the novel. Since the reader hears from both the mothers and their daughters, he/she can see both of their views and opinions. The gap between generations is very easy to relate to, since many parents and their offspring see the world very differently, even today. The Chinese customs that are introduced in the book help give it culture. The game of mah jong is talked about, along with many other Chinese eating habits and celebrations. These simple touches give the reader a sense of China's interesting way of life and highlights how the daughters may see the world a little differently than their mothers.

The intertwined tales of four mothers and their daughters brings the reader on a journey from years ago in China to America in the present. Through all of the characters' individual stories about life, relationships, and Chinese culture, a single beautiful novel emerges that opens the mind and captures the heart.