The Bonesetter's Daughter

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Summary: A Big Mistake in the Book--what's an oracle bone
Review: The oracle bone and the bones of Peking men are not the same. The former was locater in Anyang, Hunan Province, and the later was discovered in Zhoukoudian, as the book calls, the Mouth of the Mountain. It's a pity that Amy Tan made such a big mistake in her fourth book.

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Summary: Mother-Daughter Conflict-Love
Review: Amy Tan has done it again with The Bonesetter's Daughter. Not only do we have intriguing story of China in the days before and after the revolution, but we also have an age-old story of the tension between mothers and daughters that is so difficult to define and so easy to identify with. Ruth Young and her mother, LuLing, have a tortured but magnetic relationship, a bond that involves superstitions, ghosts and criticisms that come close to destroying Ruth both as a child and as an adult. Her mother's daily fear of the ghost of her mother, who influences her entire life with barely hidden guilt, permeates Ruth's life too.
As a child, Ruth learned to survive her mother's vicious attacks by communicating with Precious Auntie, her mother's mother, by writing on a sand table for her mother. It is only when LuLing is old that Ruth learns the truth about her mother's life, what tragedies she endured, what courage she had, and how very much she loves Ruth.
Besides being a good story about mothers and daughters, The Bonesetter's Daughter tells about the relationships between different cultures and the richness that comes from sharing those lives. From Chinese food, dragon bones and the importance of ancestors, to the ideas that begin to erode ancient Chinese thought and custom, this is a good read, one that will leave the reader feeling good and satisfied.

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Summary: Slowly pulls the reader in
Review: The Bonesetter's Daughter took nearly 100 pages before I got into it, but after that I was really hooked. Amy Tan is very good at building anticipation. By the time the secrets begin to be revealed, Tan has built up the reader's interest to the point where you are desperate to know. Once I was gripped, I couldn't put this book down. Tan has an excellent ability to take her characters on a journey that will lead them to better understand themselves and their loved ones. The Bonesetter's Daughter is another example of this ability.

My favourite Amy Tan novel was the Kitchen God's Wife. This book isn't quite as good as that one. The Bonesetter's Daughter is still well worth reading and highly enjoyable.

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Summary: Not The Joy Luck Club
Review: One of my all-time favourite books is The Joy Luck Club. I've read each of Amy Tan's subsequent books. Her first book was a rare and wonderful story and a true joy to read. Of all the later books this is the one that I enjoyed the least. It's not a bad book, and it's not even a bad story, but I expect so much more from Ms. Tan. I enjoyed the middle section of this story the most - the one that goes into the past in China. That part had a lot of Amy Tan's wonderful prose and characterization. I enjoyed the last part of the book the least. It seemed unfinished somehow, and left me wondering what was the purpose of transporting us to China just before the War and the Communist revolution? Ms. Tan's mediocre efforts are better than most author's best, so I also am not sorry that I took the time to read this book.

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Summary: A beautiful, smooth read
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I would definately recommend it. I found that the story was much easier to read than the Joy Luck Club, which, to me, was quite hard to follow, having to remember dozens of names. "The Bonesetter's Daughter" runs along Tan's familiar theme of traditional Chinese values versus modern American via the views of mother and daughter, yet the story line is most captivating as it takes you through a maternal mystery of sorts.

It is a fast read and the beauty and romance of Tan's writing are not lost completely on this book. The reason I don't give it five stars is that I did not enjoy it quite as much as her previous work. I believe that it lacked a little something that I came to LOVE in "The Hundred Secret Senses"... I guess whatever made me cry endlessly at the end of "Secret Senses" just wasn't as aparent to me this time around. Regardless, read the book, you won't be disappointed.

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Summary: Life is a struggle
Review: This story opens with Ruth describing her mother's forgetfulness and growing concern for her safety as she discovers she has Alzheimer's. As the story progresses, Ruth finds writings from her mother "Things I Must Not Forget". Ruth learns that her mother is aware of her condition and had taken the time to write about her life in China. This is where the bulk of the book takes place.

LuLing (Ruth's mother) had detailed how her grandfather and father had both died the day her parents were to be wed. She describes how her mother was scarred in a failed attempt to take her own life due to the trauma of it all. "Wiggled her black fingertips like ugly flames. Tongue was like a parched root and could not taste the pleasure of life." Although LuLing did not know her mother was her mother until after her death, her life never seemed to have any stability until after her arrival to the United States. Her life in China was filled with struggle and turmoil even though she came from a famous family of Bonesetter's.

After Ruth discovers the past life her mother held, she sees her in a new light. It is clear this secret life was to be shared by only her mother and her aunt, the events in her life explain why.

This is the first book I have read by Amy Tan, though, I did see the movie 'The Joy Luck Club'. Many things in this book were very similar to the movie regarding characters and subject matter. After reading plot summarizations for several of her other books, I fear she may be a typecast author. I found many things in this book also reminded me of my Taiwanese mother-in-law. I feel I am probably more versed in cultural knowledge then many Western readers due to knowledge within the family. Hence, this book was a pretty easy read for me. No explanations necessary.

The overall content of this book was good. Detailed, slow-moving at times, but well written. I appreciated the fact that this author could tell a story with a mixture of happiness and hardship without coming off fake. I recommend this book to anyone with some Asian background. Westerner's who have no knowledge of the foundation of the culture may have a hard time understanding the reasoning behind some of the events or details and may discount important pieces of this book.

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Summary: Disapointed big time
Review: Having enjoyed Amy Tan's previous books I was looking forward to a rich, enjoyable read. However, I find myself struggling at the halfway point with this book. I simply find that I don't care much for any of the characters or their problems. I would have been better off re-reading "The Joy Luck Club".

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Summary: comforting
Review: As an Asian-Canadian, I had no trouble relating to the narrator of "The Bonesetter's Daughter" and in this way, I am sort of biased towards this book. However, I think that all readers will find that the writing is charming, truthful, humourous, and witty.

The story is revealed from both LuLing's (the mother) and Ruth's (the daughter) perspectives. As LuLing's story unfolds and we discover more about her past, we begin to empathize with LuLing rather than view her as Ruth's burden. Although I have never read "The Joy Luck Club" I know that Amy Tan seems to have exhausted the subjects of the importance of family history, culture, and mother/daughter relationships. However, I do think that these are worthwhile themes and deserve recognition if the novel is as well-written and touching as "The Bonesetter's Daughter". Highly recommended.

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Summary: My Kind of Mystery!
Review: "The Bonesetters Daughter" by Amy Tan was definately my kind of mystery! Page after page of suspense and tension. But then again this is a story by a writer that I have been in love with for a long time (her writing anyway).

The characters are very realistic, the dialogue right-on, and the plot a real page turner. Who could ask for anything more?

"A 'High Five' on a job well done!

Rating:
Summary: Great begining, good middle, bad ending
Review: The Bonesetter's Daughter is about two women: Ruth, a San Franciscan woman living with her 'boyfriend' of nearly a decade and his daughters, and Ruth's mother, who has Alzheimer's. Ruth's mother has written her troubled past for her daughter to read, ultimantly bringing them closer together.

The begining of The Bonesetter's Daughter was great: Tan created memerable charachters and realistic relationships. But, when the middle began, I slowly began to loose my interest. Though she is a master at weaving plots, this time, I was just anxious for Tan to get back to talking about Ruth instead of her mother. Unfortunantly, the ending wasn't as good as I'd hoped. Everything just comes together quickly, and it leaves the reader dissatisfied: charachters that they had come to know suddenly change and do things that readers have come to believe that they wouldn't. Tan tried too hard for a happy ending, when there really shouldn't have been one, and tried to redeem charachters whom, it seemed, that earlier she had put down. I am a big fan of Amy Tan, but this isn't her best work.