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Kim Lăng Thập Tam Thoa (2012)

by Geling Yan(Favorite Author)

3.55 of 5 Votes: 5

languge

English

genre

Historical Fiction

publisher

Phương Đông & NXB Phụ Nữ

review 1: This is a book that rates higher than a three but not quite a four star in my book, though some of my opinion may be based in the fact that the style of it is not one I read much and the translation makes some of the writing appear a little awkward at times. It reminds me of the style of the Chinese novelist, Hai Jin and so I take this to be more of a cultural literary style. The basic story is very moving, A priest running a school in Nanking when the Japanese are taking over is trying to protect the 14 schoolgirls. The situation becomes more complicated when a group of prostitutes and some wounded Chinese soldiers take refuge there. The overall story is very moving and I would be interested to see the film made of it. Told from several viewpoints that switch around, a... morell of whom have past histories that are told as flashback or back story, it can make for a bit of overload and distraction from the plot.
review 2: For a book I didn't much like at the beginning, it really captivated me by the end. Initially, the style felt ridiculously simple and... What is the opposite of fluid? Rigid. I started enjoying it more as soon as the soldiers and their stories appeared, when we begin to find out more about what is going on outside the church walls. By the end, the narrative is tight, it's great, and there are only a few pages left! (it's only about 250 pages, nothing these days). It bascially gets progressively more raw as the characters fantasies of safety are destroyed, layer by layer. The epilogue goes right over the edge. Luckily,it's short because it's seriously disturbing. less

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