Meilin is a young wife and mother in 1938. With the hopes of a happy future with her husband, Xiaowen, and son, Renshu, she allows herself to imagine the life they might live, once Xiaowen returns from fighting against the Japanese army. Forced to flee their home and antique shop, Meilin brings nothing with her but Renshu, her hope, and an exquisitely illustrated handscroll, full of stories and a symbolic object of what Meilin wants Renhu's future to be: beautiful, happy, and secure. Many years later, Renshu has refashioned himself as Henry, moved to America, gone to a prestigious college, and fallen in love. But though his daughter is desperate for a connection to his past and their shared heritage, Henry refuses to discuss China, his mother, or his family, too traumatized by the pains of his war-torn childhood, and still frightened by the frightening politics of the Nationalist KMT and the Communist PRC. Can Henry accept his past? And in the process, bring himself to share it with Lily?
There is no other way to describe this book except gorgeous. Each page, each chapter, feels crafted with a subtlety and expertise that is not easy to accomplish. I've been looking forward to getting around to this one, as I'd heard that it was beautiful, touching, and finely written, and I can happily say that that is the case. Full of heart, yearning, and a desire both to leave the past behind and hold onto the things that make us who we are, Peach Blossom Spring is a modern-day masterpiece, one that will leave you reflecting on the connections between family, humanity and history.
All three of our main characters -- Meilin, Henry's brave, remarkable mother; Henry, the gentle son who becomes a distant father; and Lily, the daughter who seeks to understand where she came from -- are entirely authentic, brilliantly written with a genuineness that feels as if you are truly reading about figures who existed in real life. And, in many ways, I suppose they did -- it's easy to imagine a woman just like Meilin in the 1930s, fighting for her life and the lives of her children during the seemingly endless conflict with Japan; a man like Henry, who has a heavy heart when he remembers his home country, a place that, to him, was a combination both of unbelievable suffering and beauty; and Lily, who feels out-of-place both amongst Chinese and white people, who is searching for her identity. They are real people with real problems and issues, as well as their own hopes and aspirations.
The focus on history's oral and artistic traditions gave us a fascinating exploration of many Chinese folktales, all of them with their own morals and lessons to be learned, and I loved that Meilin kept the beauty of China and Chinese history alive through telling Henry stories from the handscroll throughout the course of the novel. There's an emphasis on the love and connection of telling a story, handed down through generations, to our own loved ones; whether or not they've already heard it, in the same form or another, is beyond the point. It is Meilin's Peach Blossom Spring that keeps the novel constantly moving forward, that encourages our characters to look forward, and eventually, to also be able to reconcile with the horrors of not only our own personal histories, but also the histories that can plague an entire country or people.
I enjoyed all of the characters and their individualities, but I think that Meilin is the heart of the story, the beating pulse that centers everyone and brings them together. She was easily my favorite, with her strength, bravery, whip-sharp intelligence, and her ability to hope and to grow. She is flawed, human, allowed to make mistakes in the course of the narrative in spite of her intellect and savviness. Not only are the characters themselves relatable, but so are the complicated family dynamics. It's an understatement to describe this book as touching; it is heartening, moving, the kind of reading that both brings tears to your eyes and a smile to your face.
Very, very highly recommended. Truly a literary masterpiece. It is books like these that make us remember why we read in the first place.
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