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The Year She Left Us (2014)

by Kathryn Ma(Favorite Author)

3.39 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0062273345 (ISBN13: 9780062273345)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Harper

review 1: this is a uniquely constructed story, where the magic lies in the conflicting emotions that the reader feels. Ari's pain is real as she slowly starts losing control of herself. Ari's selfishness and outright cruelty can both alienate and anger, as it brings sadness to her family who struggle within their own complicated lives. Ari was so frustrating, that at times I wanted to put the book down. Later, it become evident that Ari was truly suffering and was coping the only way she could in order to survive. All of the Kong women have trials they also must face and demonstrate growth at the end of the journey. I really enjoyed this book.
review 2: In this tightly woven account of a family in search of itself, Kathryn Ma invests the reader into two stirring voices ... moreand a rash of characters I imagine I’ll find it hard to forget. In part the story is told from the point of view of Ari, one of the abandoned daughters of China’s one child policy, grown up in San Francisco and now reckless in her hunt for answers. But equally the story explores the intricacies of the American lives of her adopted mother, aunt and grandmother who still feel ambivalent toward China, their ancestral homeland. Each is a force to be reckoned with and whole chapters are rightly devoted to them. In particular, the grandmother’s voice is singular and wise. She has a special bond with Ari which for me, carried the novel forward. At one point she admits to her granddaughter that “family pain lasts a lifetime.” But in the very next scene, she gives Ari the tools to help her one day move beyond it. All in all, an incisive, wrenching narrative built around a scaffold we all will recognize. less

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