An Ocean Apart, a World Away

Rating:
Summary: Wow.
Review: China remains in chaos after the revolution of 1911 and young Xueyan benefits by having a progressive father who encourages her to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor of medicine. Yanyan, called Sheila, attends an English school and doesn't have bound feet, and looks forward to making her own love match, instead of having an arranged marriage. When a political exile that happens to be a former school friend of her elder brother is wounded escaping from the police, it is Yanyan who bandages his injuries.
The two begin to fall in love, but soon the young woman is forced to make a choice between eloping and living a life on the lamb, or following her dream. She chooses college and goes to America where she faces discrimination as a woman, a Chinese, and an immigrant, but in spite of oppression learns to cook and begins to master physics. Through her experience and willingness to try she makes new friends, becomes self-aware and begins to make a new life for herself.
The one flaw of this historical novel is the voice. Yanyan's first person narration feels a bit wooden, and there is too much recapping and retelling to get the reader to the point where she leaves for America, and the first semester passes in a blur of setbacks and successes. In spite of her strong personality, she lacks a strong voice. Period details flesh out the story, but also show how little some things have changed in a hundred years.

Rating:
Summary: Wow.
Review: China remains in chaos after the revolution of 1911 and young Xueyan benefits by having a progressive father who encourages her to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor of medicine. Yanyan, called Sheila, attends an English school and doesn't have bound feet, and looks forward to making her own love match, instead of having an arranged marriage. When a political exile that happens to be a former school friend of her elder brother is wounded escaping from the police, it is Yanyan who bandages his injuries.
The two begin to fall in love, but soon the young woman is forced to make a choice between eloping and living a life on the lamb, or following her dream. She chooses college and goes to America where she faces discrimination as a woman, a Chinese, and an immigrant, but in spite of oppression learns to cook and begins to master physics. Through her experience and willingness to try she makes new friends, becomes self-aware and begins to make a new life for herself.
The one flaw of this historical novel is the voice. Yanyan's first person narration feels a bit wooden, and there is too much recapping and retelling to get the reader to the point where she leaves for America, and the first semester passes in a blur of setbacks and successes. In spite of her strong personality, she lacks a strong voice. Period details flesh out the story, but also show how little some things have changed in a hundred years.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful story!
Review: I cannot recommend this book enough! Even if you have not read the companion, "Ties that Bind, Ties that Break," this book is a great read in itself. I found the characters to be much more vividly portrayed in this book than in "Ties." Yanyan has passions and is created in a way that far surpasses many characters in other works.
This is a wonderful book for fans of historical fiction, people interested in a different view of our culture, or even people just interested in a fascinating story!

Rating:
Summary: Brillant Book!
Review: I just have to say, I am now such a big fan of Lensey Namioka. I've read "Ties that Bond, and Ties that Break" a little over a year ago, and now, After reading "An Ocean Apartm A World Away" I am simply blown away. This book was a continuation of the other and I absolutey love the fact that there are so many twists in it that you really never seem to expect. While there are so turns that went the predicable way, the rest of the story made up for it! The only down part about this book for me was, it ended on a note I didn't really like, but it was still good anyway. This is such I great read, and I can promise you, its worth every second! ^_^

Rating:
Summary: Brillant Book!
Review: I just have to say, I am now such a big fan of Lensey Namioka. I've read "Ties that Bond, and Ties that Break" a little over a year ago, and now, After reading "An Ocean Apartm A World Away" I am simply blown away. This book was a continuation of the other and I absolutey love the fact that there are so many twists in it that you really never seem to expect. While there are so turns that went the predicable way, the rest of the story made up for it! The only down part about this book for me was, it ended on a note I didn't really like, but it was still good anyway. This is such I great read, and I can promise you, its worth every second! ^_^

Rating:
Summary: Generally Good- Really About 3.8 Stars
Review: Yanyan is a 16-year old girl living in China in 1921. She's finished with highschool, and wonders what the next stage of her life will bring. Always with an interest in medicine, Yanyan is thinking of finding a way to become a doctor. But then she meets the intriguing, charismatic Liang Boashu. He wants her to come away with him and be a part of his dangerous life, but is he more important to Yanyan than medicine? This question takes Yanyan to America, where she is faced with a drastically different life and decisions about where she belongs in it.

As stated, this book was typically a pleasant read. The biggest asset this book had was its likeable main character. Yanyan's courage, strength, spunk, and uniqueness just make readers want to root for her. Her excellent personality paves the way for her compelling choices and thoughts-both of which keep the reader just aching to know what happens next. I literally finished "An Ocean Apart, A World Away" in a day!

Yet something small slightly mars this promising read. Despite all of her spirit and sparkle, Yanyan's "voice" doesn't always sound natural. A bit of dialogue is quite stiff, and at times I had a nagging sense that the novel seemed too "simple." This simplicity was a little disappointing, since this book is for a "teenage girl" audience for which middle-grade straightforwardness was not needed. Yanyan would have been an even better character if her persona was more "embellished" and she wrestled with decisions a little longer. And, I've got to say it, the last chapter and the final scene were just too rushed!

I probably seem nitpicky and cynical, but I truly enjoyed parts of this book. I loved the personality of Yanyan and felt the ideas of the books were appealing and promising. Yet I can't quite give this book a glowing review with its style problems. Read it for a usually satisfying main character, but be prepared for a few flaws.