Pearl and her Chinese mother Winnie have secrets from each other. Then for devious reasons, Winnie feels compelled to tell her life story: pre WWII Japanese invasion of China, WWII and above all her appalling marriage. (How does Tan manage to recreate, utterly convincingly, the reality of Chinese life during that period? She wasn't there!). Winnie's truth releases Pearl from her own silence. So a tasty sandwich: mother-and-daughter each end with enthralling historic reconstruction as filling.
(Annabel Bedini - bwl 102 Autumn 2021 ) |
