This is bad, very, very bad. Before Grace could answer, someone pounded on the door. Terror shot through my body as my woman parts constricted, yanking in fear up to my heart.
I'll say this for Charlie: He was patient with them too, as long as they kept quiet. To put it mildly—ughhh. Here's the other thing, besides the writing: I hated the main characters.
Hated them, especially Helen. They've all been through terrible experiences, things that make me feel for them, make me willing to forgive a lot—but even so, each of them went beyond what I could tolerate. When I wasn't cringing at the writing or seething with rage over the racism of the 40s, I was furious about whatever new despicable thing a character had just done usually to one of the other protagonists. Why were those women friends for so many years?? Relationships can be convoluted things even in less extreme circumstances than our characters faced, so I don't doubt that such a friendship is possible.
But I read nothing in that book that could justify their continued connection over the years, and with how horrifically they treated each other, I just couldn't care about any of them anymore. I read most of China Dolls in less than 24 hours, but what drove me was the desire to have finished it, to know whether it stayed as bad as it seemed to be.
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For how excited I was to read it, for how much I've loved Lisa See's other books, this experience was a major disappointment. View all 10 comments. I am partial to historical fiction set in the 's that include WWII, and was really looking forward to reading this novel chosen by my local book-club, but it unfortunately fell short for me. The story does have an interesting and engaging start, but as I became more acquainted with the deceitful main protagonists, Grace, Irene, and Ruby, their "so-called" friendship just did not click; and despite the secrets not yet revealed, I just did not especially care about these three self-absorbed da I am partial to historical fiction set in the 's that include WWII, and was really looking forward to reading this novel chosen by my local book-club, but it unfortunately fell short for me.
The story does have an interesting and engaging start, but as I became more acquainted with the deceitful main protagonists, Grace, Irene, and Ruby, their "so-called" friendship just did not click; and despite the secrets not yet revealed, I just did not especially care about these three self-absorbed dancers or the storyline that flatlined for me mid-way through.
View all 13 comments. May 16, Nethra Ram rated it it was ok Shelves: Perhaps I took too long to finish reading this book; perhaps the intervals led to me getting bored over the story, I don't know. I'll give the author the benefit of the doubt, seeing how many others have been captivated by this story. The book traces the life of three female Chinese dancers and a plethora of other characters through their time together performing at night clubs, being friends, turning enemies and trying to figure it all out.
For such a sparkling premise, I expected a moving tal Perhaps I took too long to finish reading this book; perhaps the intervals led to me getting bored over the story, I don't know. For such a sparkling premise, I expected a moving tale, or an emotionally wrought tale. I expected to feel sad, lost, poor, angry and furious in tow with each of the leading ladies. But I felt only a diluted version of these emotions, the narration starting lightly, and disappointing with not building up into a powerful force as the book picks up. I felt all three characters sounded the same, with similar thought processes, contemplations and a readiness to accept anything thrown at them, reacting briefly and going back to being all lovey dovey.
With the amount of crap each character has gone through, they have stunning backstories that bring them to the point where the book begins , they seem to have no depth, taking them at face value for the reactions they portray. There are just too many incidents that come across as convenient and hence unconvincing.
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I feel this book would've worked better if it had been a second or third person narrative instead of first. Most of the time I was confused over who was speaking. That and tighter writing would've made this a stellar novel.
For now though, it did not quite satisfy my appetite I absolutely love the cover! Feb 21, Elyse Walters rated it really liked it. NOT that other book I never heard of.
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Each girl had their own issues - secrets - struggles - and gifts. When 3 wom Forgive me When 3 women have a very close friendship - it's a wonderful - but different dynamic than a close friendship with 1 other. My favorite parts were in S F.. Well, the SF Bay Area is home to me Juice is running out.. I couldn't stay away - even while on vacation - because when you are happy -- you want to share with people you care about This book had many great 'relationship' qualities..
Grace, Helen, and Ruby, three young women from very different backgrounds, meet by chance at the exclusive and glamorous Forbidden City nightclub. Grace Lee, an American-born Chinese girl, has fled the Midwest with nothing but heartache, talent, and a pair of dancing shoes. Helen Fong lives with her extended family in Chinatown, where her traditional parents insist that she guard her reputation like a piece of jade. The stunning Ruby Tom challenges the boundaries of convention at every turn with her defiant attitude and no-holds-barred ambition.
The girls become fast friends, relying on one another through unexpected challenges and shifting fortunes. When their dark secrets are exposed and the invisible thread of fate binds them even tighter, they find the strength and resilience to reach for their dreams. But after the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor, paranoia and suspicion threaten to destroy their lives, and a shocking act of betrayal changes everything. This is not any ordinary story about friendship and love, instead it's a story that traces friendship across caste and race even though the friendship is layered with hate, revenge and greed.
Grace, Helen and Ruby- three Chinese girls, among whom one lied about her identity since it was the period when America was at war with Japan. So revealing your real identity as a Japanses would have turned fatal for your existence even though you were born in the United States. And all three belong from a torn up past and homes. Grace- survived from the abuses of her father in Ohio by running away to San Fransisco and earning a living by becoming a dancer.
Unfortunately her attempts of being a dancer proved futile when people rejected her because of her Oriental face, which finally leads her to The Forbidden City, where she meets Helen. Together they audition for a show in a club where they meet another Oriental girl, Ruby. Soon they become friends, and eventually becomes soul sisters, until Ruby's promiscuity forces Grace to leave town thus weakening the bond of friendship. More challenges like attack on Pearl Harbor to stealing one's role in a feature film to harboring secrets to betrayal forces them to move apart from one another and threatens to destroy their lives.
After reading this book, all I can say that Lisa See is an incredible author, and since I always love to read books about Chinese culture and history, I loved reading this book which captivated my mind with it's Chinese grace from the very first page. Being of Chinese origin, See crafted this novel about Chinese culture and family structure with ease and vividness. Moreover, the three characters belong from three different backgrounds, one is American born Chinese and never followed her original culture, one is completely Chinese, and the other act as a Chinese yet born in America.
The writing is fantastic layered with that authentic oriental tone thus creating a likely atmosphere for the readers. The prose is articulate and flawless, thus keeping us engaged to the core of the story. What really kept me on the edge was Grace, Helen and Ruby's friendship of how their quick friendship turning into something promising and something even stronger than blood to how it was dissipating and fading into nothingness.
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The timeline that the author drew in their plot is evocative and striking enough to take us back in time in the year the period when Japan attacked America. The author also sheds light on the backdrops of this oriental culture, of how women were demeaned in their every decisions. Not only that the author captured the 40s night club era when too much flair, frill, loud music and lights were so into the time.
The glamor in and outside the Chinese bars, restaurants and clubs in America was distinctly portrayed. The narrative is really since since each chapter is a first person account of each primary characters- Grace, Ruby and Helen. Moreover, the conversation between the girls is free-flowing. Although it's a personal person narrative plot, the author leaves us enough space to look at the story through our own eyes, thus provoking our thoughts. The characters reflect the grace, charm and the pain of their time period very distinctly and the author molded each character very precisely from one another with enough depth, pain, emotions and flaws.
And each chapter revealed a bit more about their past and demeanor. The emotions are strongly depicted thus making us break our heart every time Ruby or Grace or Helen fought with each other. I simply fell in love with their friendship instead of falling in love with the characters. Overall, the book is engrossing and enthralling which tells us a story of friendship layered in between the timeline of world war and culture in-differences.
Since the main theme of the book is friendship, this book will not only appeal to the historical fiction fans but will also appeal to the general readers. This book is a must-read! Many, many thanks to the author Lisa See, for providing me with a copy of her book, in return for an honest review. Vale aclarar que no son lugares ficticios. Si googlean los nombres de los clubes, los van a encontrar.
De todas formas, no me parece que See sea una mala escritora. View all 4 comments. Mar 19, Jeanette rated it it was ok. The dialog between the girls doesn't seem like actual conversation, it just didn't work for me. These characters did not come alive to me as real women. And how they related to each other? Maybe it would be possible for their shared career path? Hoping that each chapter might get me interested in these women's outcomes, I stopped and started this book several times.
But I never got imbedded in any outcomes and they never connected to me.
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Or to each other much either, IMHO. It could be the S. Regardless, for me, the tension and depth were just missing in this story. Peony I knew by the end of that book. Snow Flower I felt her fear and sorrows. These women I just knew about the facades of their lives and mores of their work, and don't know the individuals at all. Apr 11, Coleen rated it liked it. This is a story of three American "Oriental" girls as they were called at the time who meet by chance in San Francisco in the late 's while trying out as nightclub dancers on the outskirts of Chinatown.
Each come from different backgrounds and the story centers around their friendship as it evolves and changes through the next ten years or so. I honestly had trouble really liking this book. I found the writing somewhat mediocre and I really didn't care for any of the characters, even by th This is a story of three American "Oriental" girls as they were called at the time who meet by chance in San Francisco in the late 's while trying out as nightclub dancers on the outskirts of Chinatown.
I found the writing somewhat mediocre and I really didn't care for any of the characters, even by the end of the novel. Calling their relationship a "friendship" seemed to be somewhat of a loose interpretation of the word, as the young women never seemed to have a close relationship and were tirelessly having petty arguments amongst themselves or constantly seemed to be in competition with one another for fame and popularity.
However, despite my mixed feelings about the characterization, I did enjoy the setting of the book, and I feel like I was enlightened about the United States during World War II and the attitudes Americans had about the Japanese and thus the Japanese American people at the time. I've enjoyed other books by Lisa See, but this one just didn't hit the mark for me. The prejudice felt very familiar to what Muslims and Mexicans in this country might be experiencing in America now or in the near future if we allow a certain trumpeter who likes to blow his own horn into office.
Prejudice will live throughout history and the future, but books like this can educate us as to its effects on its innocent victims and the unfairness of such thoughts. Unfortunately, while the book's message and content were relevant, the narrator of the audiobook only managed to make the characters sound one dimensional and cold.
The three female leads had very diverse personalities and backgrounds, yet all came out in almost the exact same voice, which made it hard to follow. I did like reading about their performances on the Chop Suey circuit, Chinese traditions, and the internment of Japanese-Americans. I have to give Lisa See the benefit of a doubt because she's always phenomenal. Jun 03, Connie rated it it was amazing Shelves: Lisa See has really outdone herself with this one.
I'm not at sure if she shouldn't just put up her pen and call it a day I seriously wonder how she can ever top it Most people if asked what this book was about would automatic reply with it's about some Chinese and Japanese girls in San Francisco at the time leading up to, during and after WWII To me, that's the whole point. This is a story about 3 Oh. This is a story about 3 Americans from Chinese and Japanese descent.
These ladies are every bit as American as any one else born and raised in the USA. Although your ancestry might help shape you, it does not define you. This is also the story of how people are judged and sometimes defined by their looks. This is the story of a great friendship. One that is true to life Yes, perhaps there will be parts that make you mad and wonder how anyone could call someone like that a friend, but this book broke my heart. It made me seriously try to put myself in that time period. To imagine what it was like around me.
The sense of survival. Trying to maintain trust whilst everyone around you is pointing fingers. It reminds me that for some, trying to make peace with what you know, what is expected of you, what you want, and your own past Sometimes the battles we fight in silence, within ourselves When will any of us be judged solely on their own merits? By only their own actions? I know that's a Pollyanna view and an unrealistic desire Why must we judge on the colour of skin?
On all of the very things that we are powerless to change? Yet, the things within our power Yes, I won't say that parts of this book didn't just break my heart. That it didn't depress me. However, these characters were so rich to me. I fell in love with so many of them. I understood so many of them. I admired so many of them. I could sympathize with so many of them By the way Lisa See presented them to me, well, even though I knew they were unyielding in their actions, even though I was angry and upset by this I understood why they were that way However, the main characters of this book I can't imagine going through what any one of them endured.
Let alone coming out like they did. The courage they displayed. How easy would it have been for any one of them to just throw in the towel and to despair at life. How easy it would be to just look at the actions of others and to toss them aside and never give them another thought Some would argue that this makes them too soft hearted and gullible.
It is, in fact, much harder to set aside our own feelings and try to understand another's We should all be so lucky to have people around us like this No one ever does something without a reason Our past does define our future This doesn't forgive anyone of any wrong doing But leave your preconceived ideas of "china dolls" at the door. For me, this was not a novel about some night club dancers. That couldn't be further from the truth I realise that my review might not convey how much I loved this book Let me set the record straight I already miss Grace, Ruby, Helen and Eddie Mar 27, Rebecca rated it really liked it Shelves: As they grow closer, sharing apartments and gigs, the cardinal virtue of loyalty often seems at odds with the exigencies of stardom.
However, the strategy of dividing first-person narration three ways is less than successful; I wondered if a third-person omniscient perspective might have worked better, or if See should have chosen just one girl probably Grace as narrator. I also felt the novel was trying to cover too much historical ground and might have been improved by zooming in on a shorter time span. Non-subscribers can read an excerpt of my full review at BookBrowse.
Jun 10, Amanda rated it it was ok. This novel was definitely a miss for me. I guess nothing will live up to Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. The premise of the novel was promising hence why I requested it for Early Reviewers and I love the historical time period Because these girls are so derogatory about each other, it made me unsympathetic to their plights and I did not care what happened to them. May 29, Carol rated it it was ok. I was very surprised Lisa See came out with this book.
It is flat, plodding, and dull. I don't actually understand the story arc or ultimate point of the novel. I found this book to be shallow reading based for pre-teens. The girls were shallow, giggly, and immature. Jun 17, Isabel Allende rated it really liked it. The author of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan beautifully explores the intricacies of friendship. The Hook - I'm a fan of Lisa See.
After reading many high fives for China Dolls I decided I was in.
When I needed a new audiobook China Dolls won the toss. I wanted to give myself time to think what went wrong for me in this book. I expected to be wowed but came away feeling conflicted. There were many things I liked, each woman's story and their struggle and determination to be The Hook - I'm a fan of Lisa See. There were many things I liked, each woman's story and their struggle and determination to be reach the top, the pre-World War II setting in San Francisco's China Town, the examination of race and culture as it pertains to the Chinese and Japanese in a world on the brink of war, and its nod to real life events of that period, including the real Forbidden City and Charlie Low.
I liked the descriptions of their clothing, hairstyles, dance routines, and mores of the day. Something was just off. Like others who gave this less than good marks, the characters and dialog seemed stilted to me. Perhaps some of my disconnect came from the listen rather than the printed page.
I had trouble with the narrator, Jodi Long. When she kept to her own voice, all was fine, but her change in vocalization for each of the characters, Grace, Helen and Ruby, just didn't work for me. Interestingly, Jodi Long narration of China Dolls is an Audiofile Magazine Earphones Award Winner , an award given for "Earphones to truly exceptional presentations that excel in all the following criteria: Narrative voice and style Vocal characterizations Appropriateness for the audio format Enhancement of the text I enjoyed the historical aspects enough to want to read Forbidden City, USA: Chinese American Nightclubs, Mar 05, Lyn Readinghearts rated it really liked it Recommends it for: Lisa See fans, those interested in Chinese American culture.
Like many readers, my introduction to author Lisa See's work was with Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, and like most readers, I instantly fell in love. The book was beautifully written, the story was wonderful. Since reading Snow Flower, I have read most of the rest of Lisa See's work, and own copies of them all.
To say that I am a fan of her work just doesn't quite say it all. I recently read her new offering, China Dolls, and I am glad to say that I was not disappointed. China Dolls tells the s Like many readers, my introduction to author Lisa See's work was with Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, and like most readers, I instantly fell in love.
China Dolls tells the story of the rise of Asian entertainers on the nightclub circuit during the late s through the mid s, through the lives of Grace, Helen, and Ruby, three separate women who were Asian entertainers during that time. It is in the way that the lives of these three women alternately intersect and diverge that the story of what it was like to be an entertainer on the "Chop Suey Circuit" was like. One of the things that I have always loved about Lisa See's books is the way she uses her characters as the main story-telling agent in her books.
In China Dolls, each of the three main characters represent an amalgamation of people that lived in that time in history. Grace is a Chinese born American whose parents moved to the Midwest to raise their daughter as far from other Chinese as possible. Helen is also an American born Chinese, but her parents are living the traditional Chinese lifestyle in a secluded compound in San Francisco's Chinatown. Ruby, on the other hand, is the girl who wants to be totally American in every way, using American slang and dressing American whenever she can, but who is hiding more of a secret that just her wish to be American and not Asian.
I have to say, I am continually amazed at how Lisa See is able to come up with such vibrant, realistic characters that effectively represent a section of Asian culture and history time and time again. Her characters are so well crafted that they become very real to me, and stay with me long after I have read the book. Another strong point of the book, and Lisa See's writing in general, is her excellent knowledge of the history and culture of the subject that she is writing about.
Her research into the subject is always spot on. In the case of China Dolls, the main nightclub in San Francisco, The Forbidden City, really existed, showcasing first Chinese entertainers, and later Asian entertainers of all kinds well into the s. Many of the characters in the book were actual owners or entertainers at the nightclub, although in many cases she has changed their names. The logic underpinning the system is often karmic: Hong Kong celebrities, including Jackie Chan, have been spotted wearing lucky Thai amulets. This was a factor that helped create a market for them in the city; prior to that they had only previously taken off to any large degree in Singapore.
Patton says the Hongkongers most drawn to the world of amulets and Thai sorcery are working-class people hit by the global financial crisis. Businessmen, however, are also drawn to the practice, as are lovelorn women. People who like to collect things are also customers.
Whether all the Hongkongers who invest in occult objects understand their spiritual significance is unclear. With amulets available at phone and computer accessory stores, they might simply be a fad. However, the behaviours and values associated with these fetish objects classify as cultish, Patton says. A free consultation is required before any purchase at the Kwun Tong store. Like a therapist, the vendor will listen with empathy to your woes and determine which spirit is the most appropriate to call upon for assistance.
Sometimes, she might not even prescribe a purchase: She gestures to pictures of him pinned to her wall. It is this monk who consecrates each object in the shop, she says, infusing in them the spirit or ghost enlisted to do the bidding of the new owner in return for redemption. She pulls out an amulet with an illustration of a mother and child. Squeezed on a worn sofa are three men smoking cigarettes, fastening necklace chains to the occult paraphernalia. And in a leather chair sits a toy doll with an impish grin and penetrating plastic eyes. We are told that the doll contains the spirit of an aborted baby.
He has joined the plastic doll on its chair, carefully balancing it on his knee and whispering sweet nothings into its ear. He speaks tenderly and pityingly of the toy doll, which is passed around the group for nurturing. For people who have trouble dealing with other humans, helping ghosts may be more straightforward and satisfying, even though Chinese tradition suggests staying as far away from ghosts as possible, says Joseph Bosco, an anthropologist formerly at Chinese University. Bosco has written extensively on supernatural beliefs in Hong Kong and China. So any help the ghosts give is at a price.
Bosco says that while many Hongkongers will be put off by practices that involve close interactions with ghosts, there are several aspects of the Thai occult that appeal in Hong Kong and China. The lure of Thailand and its spirit world is not only drawing in Hongkongers, but also garnering attention further afield. There are Chinese arriving in Thailand intending to fill suitcases with amulets. Jenks has recently completed The Thai Occult , a book describing the beliefs to non-Asian collectors.
Thailand is a particularly strong magnet for seekers of the supernatural owing to its complex ghost world. According to Jenks, the boundaries between life and death in the kingdom are incredibly thin. In the Kwun Tong store it is approaching midnight when we leave, having bought nothing but been offered information for hours, an invitation to return at a later date, and a tacit warning: Skip to main content. How Hongkongers have embraced Thai occult charms. Tuesday, 07 February, , 6: Tuesday, 07 February, , 5: More on this story. Thai scientists debunk sweating crystals, boiling oil and other superstitions 4 Jul