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Summary: Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. When I first started reading, I was a little apprehensive, but as soon at the stories of Luo and that narrator's lives came about, I was hooked. I learned so much about the Chinese Revolution that I had not previously studied in school. The friendship and the eagerness to read, in both of the boys, made the book that much more enjoyable. The comic relief also made the story very interesting. I would have no hesitation in recommending this book to anyone.
Rating: 
Summary: Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
Review: Dai Sijie's story of the unnamed protagonist and his best friend Luo is one book I can truly say I had a hard time putting down. This review can not possibly describe Dai Sijie's words and descriptions that depicts the story of the two boys and their struggle to beat the "reeducation" of the Cultural Revolution of China. The book captivates one's mind and soul; you will find yourself constantly searching for what will happen next to these two boys while you cry, laugh and sympathizing with them along their journey. Even if the reader has no concept of the terrible hardships of the Cultural Revolution of China, the reader can grasp the idea from the novel, no former background is necessary before reading the novel. The boys discover love, hope and friendship, a combination that would seem to contrast the horrors and sacrifices made during the Cultural Revolution. This novel is a must read and I would recommend it to anyone.
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Summary: Simply powerful
Review: This story of two young men who are banished to rural China because their parents are seen as enemies of the state is very simply told, yet conveys the enormity of the supression of the Cultural Revolution. I haven't enjoyed a book this much in a long time. About two-thirds of the way through the book, there is an update in which three of the characters tell their own stories--then switching back to the story as it was being related. I did not object to this change of pace, but it was different.
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Summary: Charming Read
Review: This book was just a delight to read. The story was charming, the characters were interesting. While reading this short novel, I felt like I was routing for the main characters. It provides some insight to the life of a child growing up in communist China, which is always fascinating to me!
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Summary: exquisitely written, culturally fascinating
Review: Dai Sijie's book is a triumph, a powerful evocation of the depths of rural China in the early 1970s. So compellingly realistic is this story of the coming of age of two teenage boys, as their world is opened both to romance (in the person of the little seamstress) and the world beyond China (in the guise of contraband Western books) that I had to keep reminding myself that it was a work of fiction. But understand too that the Cultural Revolution indeed turned China upside down, that families such as those of the two teenage protagonists suffered greatly, and that rural China of the early 1970s was indeed isolated with few modern conveniences. It is also the case, as reflected in the novel, that even the most grueling experiences in China did not entirely snuff out traditional pleasures and kindnesses and entrepreneurial instincts and mischief. If you find this book as compelling as I did and want to further enrich the experience, seek out a copy of the North Korean film "The Flower Girl" which figures prominently in the book. Although I watched the film as dubbed in Chinese (and know nothing of the language), its plot and bathos are so straightforward that you can follow it fairly easily and feel almost as if you have personally lived the tale told by Dai Sijie.
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Summary: Couldn't put it down....
Review: If you want a nice book to read on a Saturday afternoon, than this is it.
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Summary: Pure storytelling genius!
Review: This elegantly crafted tale of two young men who are sent to the Chinese countryside during the Cultural Revolution is a page-turner. Each chapter and scene is a colorful little tale all its own, but the book flows and creates a mountain of suspense. When the two young men meet a traveling tailor and his stay-at-home daughter, they become obsessed with the beauty of the young girl. Top 50 Amazon.com reviewer Mary Whipple wrote, "But the main characters' expressed desire to "civilize" and ultimately "transform" the little seamstress may be a difficult cultural pill for independent American women to swallow, much less empathize with." Not for me! These young men seem to exude the testosterone qualities that transcend cultures. Dai Sijie may be my new favorite author! This book is a little powerhouse of storytelling genius.
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Summary: Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
Review: I was reminded of Tom Sawyer and of Oliver Twist in this fast-moving sometimes funny; often harrowing tale. Having never read Balzac I felt as though there was a lot that may have gone over my head. After I finished, I read Tom Sawyer and also a memoir called The Colors of the Mountain by Da Chen which is also about growing up in the Cultural Revolution as the son of a landlord. There were so many parallels between the two (Colors of the Mtn and Balzac and the Chinese Seamstress) and interestingly both had elements reminiscent of Tom Sawyer. I found the ending quite enigmatic. Made me wonder if I'd missed something by not reading Balzac.
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Summary: Interesting read but too short, too ideal, too westernized
Review: I was very interested in this book at first because it had caused a sensation in France and even my French teacher mentioned it in class. Also because the film version was supposedly very good.The image on the cover also made it very interesting. However, when I was reading it, i realized that it did not meet my expectations. This book is too unrealistic- it tries to hard to be sentimental, to be idyllic and sometimes to be funny. There is something about this book that isn't quite right. Both of my parents grew up during the Cultural Revolution and its true that books were hard to come by and that many people were sent to the countryside to be "educated." But this book didn't feel that way. After the two boys went through their initial hardships and burden of work, it seemed like they were free to frolic with the little seamstress any time they wanted to. Also, when the seamstress consummated her relationship with Luo, it didn't seem quite right because in Chinese culture, it wasn't considered acceptable and girls are supposed to be more withdrawn. It lessens the impact of their relationship and makes it seem more like an episode of an American TV show than a chinese novella. This author doesn't give much description about the beautiful surroundings and the culture that the characters grew up with. It feels like a caucasion author, an outsider wrote this. But otherwise, I thought this novella had a very interesting story and prose though I regret paying $18 for the hardcover edition for such a short book.
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Summary: The awesome power of literature
Review: For such a small book, Balzac and the Chinese Seamstress packs a wallop. The setting is the Cultural Revolution's 'reeducation' process; the characters are two friends who find a cache of Western literature and the daughter of a tailor in a nearby town. Those two discoveries open the windows of their minds - but also lead to their downfall.
Beautiful piece of literature.
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