Review: Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden (by Zhuqing Li)

My Rating: 4 stars

I'm quite picky when it comes to reading nonfiction books.  I tend to gravitate toward biographies and memoirs as well as essay collections, though I do also read general nonfiction when the occasion calls for it (i.e.: book club pick).  In these instances, subject matter is pretty important, especially since it takes more focus and concentration on my part to get through a nonfiction book.  In this sense, when I read the premise for linguist and East Asian scholar Zhuqing Li's Daughters of the Flower Fragrant Garden, and saw that it fell perfectly into these 2 categories (biography + nonfiction subject matter I'm interested in), I knew this was a book I would want to read. 

While there is some anecdotal information interspersed throughout, majority of Li's book is actually about her two aunts Jun and Hong, who came of age during one of the most tumultuous times in China's history.   Born 2 years apart into the prominent and wealthy Chen family, the sisters grew up in a beautiful villa in Fuzhou built by their father — a home they came to know as the Flower Fragrant Garden.  When the onset of World War II and Japan's invasion of various parts of China forces the Chen family to flee their home, Jun especially finds her hard-won right to further her education through attending college completely upended.  Hong also experiences hardship during this period, but she is ultimately able to finish her studies and fulfill her dream of becoming a doctor.  At the end of the war, with China and the Allies victorious, the family thought they would be able to return to their former lives as well as their beloved villa in the mountains, but it was not to be.  Civil war breaks out between the ruling Nationalist Party and the Communists, with everything coming to a head when Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek flees to Taiwan and the Communist Party comes to power under Mao Zedong.  During this time, the sisters' lives are changed forever when Jun ends up stuck on an island under Nationalist control and, unable to return to the Mainland, eventually moves to Taiwan and marries a Nationalist general, which results in estrangement from her family for decades.  Hong meanwhile endures the many hardships brought about by the Great Leap Forward, Cultural Revolution, and many of the other disastrous "initiatives" implemented in China during that time.  It is not until 1982, after decades apart, with both sisters having survived various hardships, that Jun and Hong are finally able to reunite.  

In this chronicle of her two aunts' extraordinary lives, Zhuqing Li tells the story of her family line set against the backdrop of China's turbulent post-WWII sociopolitical history and the evolution of the country's fraught relationship with Taiwan.  I actually started this book last week and finished it on Saturday (June 4th), which happened to be the 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre (a coincidence that only dawned on me after I finished reading the book).  Though this particular story isn't about Tiananmen Square (despite that event still being mentioned in the book, albeit briefly), its significance in terms of China's political history is, of course, not lost on me Even though I was only 11 years old when the Tiananmen Square massacre occurred and of course, having already immigrated to the U.S. years before that, I was thousands of miles away, but that didn't make it any less impactful, especially as a Chinese girl coming of age during that time.  In that context, this was, without a doubt, not an easy read by any means — hearing Jun's and Hong's stories, with the unflinching descriptions of harrowing experiences they had to endure,  the political undercurrents that dominated their entire lives, it was hard not to be moved by the resilience and endurance of these two remarkable women.

Regardless of background, this will undoubtedly be a difficult read for those who decide to pick this one up, but it is well worth the effort.  On the surface, this may seem like simply a story of two sisters separated by war, but much deeper than that, it is also an insightful look into Chinese history, culture, politics, and much more.

Received ARC from W. W. Norton via Bookbrowse First Impressions program.

Review: The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers (by Maxwell King)

 My Rating: 4 stars

It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day for a neighbor, won’t you be mine, won’t you be mine, won’t you be my neighbor?

Just hearing this opening line brings back so many wonderful memories for me!  Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood was one of the shows I used to watch almost religiously back as a child growing up in the 1980s.  Even though I moved on to other shows when I became an adult, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood had left such an impression on me that many of the “lessons” I had learned from the show continue to stay with me even now.  I loved so many aspects of the show back then: the songs, the puppets, the adventures, and of course, the gentle soul with the soothing voice who brought everything together for us day in and day out – yes, Fred Rogers was my childhood hero, the father figure I wish I’d had.  

Given the above, it should come as no surprise that when I found out a few months ago about a new biography being published about Fred Rogers’s life and his iconic show, I just knew that this was a book I absolutely had to read.  I was disappointed when I wasn’t able to get my hands on an advance copy prior to publication, but luckily, my library came through for me and I was finally able to secure a copy to read (though only after having to wait several weeks on the “hold” list).  Reading this book was quite an emotional experience for me, as it not only brought back many fond memories of the show, it also gave me so much insight into the life of Fred Rogers and the one-of-a-kind person he was.  Prior to reading this biography, I had no idea how much effort had gone into producing his show and how every aspect of the production – from the dialogue to the music to the puppetry, even such things as the length of each episode -- was meticulously thought out.  What stood out for me the most though was how genuinely Mister Rogers cared about children and how devoted he was to their education and overall well-being.  One of the things that made Fred Rogers truly unique, especially for someone in the world of showbiz, was the fact that “what you saw was what you got” – meaning that the gentle, kind fatherly figure you saw on the TV screen, he was the exact same way in real life.  As Mister Rogers had said in previous interviews, he was neither an actor nor an entertainer, he was always just being himself.  It’s interesting that back then, his view that children should be respected for who they are and their thoughts and feelings should be respected as well, was actually considered “radical” thought, with some critics likening it to “coddling” children to the point of spoiling them, yet later on, as thoughts on child development evolved and progressed, his viewpoint was actually welcomed, encouraged and even held up as the “gold” standard for how to treat children.

I will be honest in saying that I find it impossible to sum up the legacy of Fred Rogers and how much he meant to those of us who grew up watching his show, in one biography about his life, regardless of how substantive or thorough that biography is -- which is why, for me, this review is so hard to write because I know I will never be able to give it the justice it deserves.  In that sense, this book is a breath of fresh air in that, given the negativity-filled world we live in today, it is a nostalgic reprieve and a reminder of what it means to be a genuinely humble, honest, kind person who truly cared about others.  As far as “celebrity” biographies go, this one I would definitely recommend, not because it was particularly well-written (in fact, the writing was actually the worse part of this book to be honest – the other reviews that mentioned the repetitiveness of the writing were actually spot-on).  Rather, this book should be read for its subject matter and, perhaps, as a rare positive boost given the current world we live in today. 

Review: Bruce Lee: A Life (by Matthew Polly)

My Rating: 5 stars 

As I've mentioned in other reviews, I was born in HK and even though I've lived in the U.S. for most of my life, that has not stopped me from having a strong connection to the place of my birth.  My fondness for HK runs deep and even though it is a very different place now from what it was when I first grew to know the city back in the 1980s, my affinity for it has not waned.  Because of this background, I've always been sensitive about how HK is portrayed, especially by the Western world and those who may or may not be familiar with the city's language, culture, history, etc.  Don't get me wrong – I'm not saying that HK always has to be portrayed in a good light because we all know that bad things do happen there as they do everywhere in the world and bringing that stuff to light is absolutely necessary…rather, my concern has always been that the portrayal is accurate and fair, which, for those who do not already have familiarity with HK and/or Chinese culture, may mean doing the research necessary to ensure integrity of the portrayal is preserved.  For me, authenticity is important when it comes to non-fiction portrayals of real-life events and absolutely, when it comes to biographies of real-life people, especially those who are no longer around to either validate or refute what is being written about their lives.  

I must admit when I first found out that American martial arts and travel writer Matthew Polly was releasing an authoritative biography on Hong Kong martial arts legend Bruce Lee, the question of authenticity did come into my mind initially.  Knowing virtually nothing about Polly prior to starting this book, I wondered how this biography would play out.  Would this book be in the same vein as some of the other English language books out there that have attempted to cover certain aspects of Bruce's life but never really managed to be comprehensive?  Or would this one focus heavily on the martial arts aspect, on Wing Chun and Jeet Kune Do and Chinese kung fu, with the actual details of Bruce's life merely a side story?  At minimum, I thought for sure this biography would focus more heavily on the Western portrayal of Bruce's life, his studies in the United States, his stint in Hollywood, his many celebrity friends as well as students, his relationship with his wife Linda, etc.  – basically a lot of what had already been said in the innumerable library of source material on Bruce Lee (whether books, magazines, newspapers, movies, TV shows, etc.).

Given the above, it should come as no surprise then, that I had mixed feelings at first going into this read.  On the one hand, I was excited, since, after all, this is a biography about one of Hong Kong's penultimate cultural icons.  My connection with the city aside, it is not lost on me that there has always been (and continues to be) very little Asian (more specifically Chinese) representation in the American literary world and representation from Hong Kong is minimal at best -- so when I saw that someone actually took the time to write an extensive biography about one of my birth city's greatest self-made superstars, I jumped at the opportunity to read this massive book (and yes, at 656 pages, this book is indeed MASSIVE), despite the fact that, like most Hong Kongers, I already knew pretty much everything there was to know about Bruce Lee's short but vibrant life.  On the other hand, I was skeptical, as Bruce Lee was one of those rare celebrities who became a bona fide international icon almost entirely posthumously and I frankly did not know what to expect.

Now after finishing this book (and yes I'm proud to say I read every single page, cover to cover, including the 200+ pages of notes and references as well as extensive bibliography), I have to say that my initial reservations were unwarranted, as this biography exceeded my expectations and then some!  I am pleasantly surprised, delighted, and absolutely in awe at the amount of research that went into this book! What made this particular biography about Bruce Lee stand out from all the previous works that had been written about him was the tremendous depth of coverage – not just the fact that the narrative covered nearly every aspect of Bruce's life from birth to death in great detail, but also the extensive detail about Hong Kong itself – the historical background, insight into the culture, coverage of the HK entertainment industry and who all the major players were back then, the background on Bruce's family, the various personal as well as celebrity friends and acquaintances he had over there, etc. (I was surprised to see so many familiar names and places in the book – stuff I rarely ever see in books about HK written in English).  As the author Matthew Polly states in his Afterword, over the past four and a half decades, it seems like every single person who ever knew Bruce Lee at some point has written a book about him — while this is true, my opinion is that many of these works have in common is that most were written from the perspective of the writer's own memories and what they remembered about their interactions with him, but very few (if any) featured the extensive amount of research and fact-checking that went into this biography.  In his author's note, Polly talks about his methodology and the prep work that went into writing this book: "I watched everything Bruce had ever done and took copious notes.  I read everything that had ever been written about Bruce and took copious notes.  And then I interviewed everyone who had ever known Bruce and was willing to talk and took copious notes.  Then I compiled these notes into a single Word document in chronological order.  The final file was over 2,500 pages and a million words long."  And also this:  "The process took over six years.  I spent six months in Hong Kong and another two in Los Angeles and Seattle.  Along the way, I interviewed over a hundred people and met with many others who were helpful in countless ways."

For me, what mattered the most with this book wasn't necessarily the content itself, but rather, the effort that was put in and the exhaustive lengths the author went through to ensure that his final product does justice to its subject.  Of all the books I've read in my lifetime (so far), this was the first time where, upon finishing the ARC version of this book, I immediately went and purchased the final published version because I knew that I absolutely had to "collect" this book for my personal library.  If I didn't already have a long list of books that I still needed to get to, there's no doubt that I would've launched into an immediate re-reading of this book, though this time with the notes side-by-side for comparison.  What I loved most about this book is that -- unlike many of the other books / magazines / articles out that have been written over the years that portray a largely romanticized, idealized, and at times even bordering on caricature version of Bruce Lee, this author chose to go the opposite direction and present Bruce as he was in real life:  as an ordinary guy with an extraordinary personality and a charming, larger-than-life persona, but also more character flaws than can be counted on two hands.  In striving to present the human side of Bruce, Polly laid out everything as is, both the good and the bad, but more importantly, he explained with the most thoroughness that I've seen thus far, the significance of Bruce Lee's legacy and why it still matters today.  This is one of those books that deserves not just to be read -- complete from the Prologue to the Epilogue and everything in between, including the Afterword, the notes, and the bibliography --  but also explored, savored, and cherished (for me personally, the Epilogue and Afterword were my favorite parts of the book).

I've always found it difficult to summarize someone's entire life in a few short paragraphs so I'm not going to even try it with this review.  Instead, I encourage those reading this review to experience the book for yourself, whether you are a fan of Bruce Lee and/or martial arts or not.  The historical and cultural aspects of Hong Kong are well-depicted in here and for that alone, especially for those who may not be familiar with Hong Kong, this is an insightful read.  For those curious about Hollywood in the 1960s and 70s, the film-making process, what it was like for celebrities during that time, the lifestyle, the environment, this book gives an interesting glimpse into that era.  If you are into martial arts and wanted to explore that angle of Bruce's life, this book does a great job breaking down the basics as it relates to Bruce's philosophy and how Jeet Kune Do came to be (and it's done in a way that folks with little to no knowledge / interest in martial arts like me can easily understand).  And finally, if you are a Bruce Lee fan, you should definitely read this book, as it is a sincere and fascinating exploration of the short  yet dynamic life of one of the most recognizable names on the planet.

This year marks the 45^th anniversary of Bruce Lee's death.  Even though this book was published last month (in June) and I've had the ARC sitting in my queue for a few months already, I actually didn't crack this book open until this week – in fact, I started reading this on July 20^th (I'm sure it is not lost on Bruce Lee fans the significance of this date) and despite its length (600+ pages!), I plowed through it in 4 days (definitely a record for me).  Beyond Bruce Lee's legacy and what he is known for in the international arena – his martial arts, his film career, his mysterious and sudden death, his scandals and high-profile relationships, his vitality and his larger-than-life persona – the biggest significance for me as a Chinese-American who, like Bruce, had one foot firmly planted in the East and the other equally in the West,  is the fact that he broke through cultural barriers, transformed long-held, misguided perceptions about Asians in the Western world, and through his example, empowered us to believe in ourselves, in our self-worth, and the possibility to achieve what was previously unachievable; he opened the doors for us and gave us a voice.  The part that resonates with me the most and, for me, will always be the true legacy that Bruce Lee left us is summed up in this passage from the Epilogue where Polly writes:  "But perhaps most important in this age of polarization and ethnic strife is the example he [Bruce] set and espoused.  As a Eurasian, he faced discrimination from both sides of the East/West divide.  He never let it stop him.  Instead, he preached a message of post-racial unity. [When asked whether he felt he was more Chinese or more American, Bruce would often answer] 'I think of myself as a human being, because under the sky, there is but one family.  It just so happens that people are different.'  And he practiced it.  He accepted anyone who wanted to learn from him.  His first student in America was Jesse Glover [a black man whom everyone he approached refused to teach purely because of the color of his skin].  'If he felt you were sincere, Bruce taught you, ' [his student] Taky Kimura recalls.  'He didn't care what race you were.'"  In the decades since Bruce Lee's death, our world has greatly evolved and many things have changed, both for better and for worse – in the area of race relations, while there has been significant progress, we are still far from the ideal of "post-racial unity" that Bruce preached.  I cannot say for sure whether we will ever get there, but one thing's for sure -- the road, while definitely still bumpy and difficult, is a lot smoother now for Asian-Americans than it was back during that time and without a doubt,  Bruce Lee was instrumental in making that happen.  For that, I am grateful!

Received ARC from Simon & Schuster via NetGalley.