The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

by Lisa See
Scott County Library hardcover 370 pages
genre: Historical fiction
published: 2017

I got this book for my sister Ann for her book club (Scott County Libraries rock! Hennepin County is a bit more ponderous in this pandemic era.) I decided to read it, too, and I'm glad I did! I've also read her books Shanghai Girls and Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. Now I'm curious to read some of her other titles! This lady can write!

Li-yan (known as "Girl") is a member of the Akha people, living in China's mountains and harvesting tea. The book follows her life and the lives of others near to her over the course of a few decades. If you want more info, read here.

Page 136 - "But since our lives are out of alignment with the world, today we must endure a visit from the strangest creatures of all: missionaries. Akhas are taught never to hate, but this particular group of foreigners, who tell us our practices are evil and there is only one god, challenge my patience."

Though it makes me sad to think of Christian missionaries as the "bad guys," I can totally see the culture clash and misunderstandings. I believe missionaries are more sensitive nowadays to how they share the gospel.

Page 158 - Ugh! The horrible things people say to adoptive parents! When Connie Davis writes the letter to her mother and shares some of the questions people have asked her, I knew that the fiction had basis in truth. "'Are you the babysitter?' 'Does this one belong to you? I thought she might be lost.' 'How much did she cost?' 'Is it hard for you to love her when she doesn't look like you?' People can be so cruel and unthinking. But here's what bothers me the most. Haley doesn't yet realize what they're saying, but she will. What will I tell her then? How will I comfort her?"

Page 230 - When Li-Yan and her new husband are in California shopping and eating out: "Wow! I so like this American word. Wow! Wow! Wow!"

That just made me smile.

Page 313 - "How your dad and I felt when we got you. What you meant to us then. What you mean to us now. In the months leading up to the phone call that told us we could come and get you, I did everything I could to understand Chinese culture. I went on a walking tour of Chinatown, I devoured Amy Tan's books, I watched Chinese movies."

Although this is in Haley's essay, it made me think of the fierce love that moms have for their children, whether biological or adoptive. A lot of this book was about motherhood and especially mother-daughter relationships.

Page 353 - "When our noodles arrive, I follow Sean's example and pour steaming tea over my chopsticks and other tableware, then toss the dirty liquid on the ground. The alternative would be the trots or worse. Every pandemic in the history of the world has come from China." (emphasis mine)

This really caught my eye! I don't know if that's a true statement, but coming two years before Covid-19, it definitely jumped out at me when I read it.

Page 368 - This is part of the Acknowledgements, but I wanted to include it. "I am hugely indebted to the writings of Paul W. Lewis, who served as a missionary to the Akha with the American Baptist Foreign Mission Society in Burma from 1947 to 1966. . . "

How interesting that she credits a missionary as a research source.

This was an excellent book!

Shanghai Girls

by Lisa See
PRMS paperback 309 pages
genre: historical fiction, China, relationships

I finally finished this, even though the book club discussion was last week . . . it was a sad story, filled with sorrow and disappointment. I think the thing that shocked me most was seeing the picture of the author on the back page. She doesn't look oriental at all! I definitely empathized more with Pearl. May just seemed too selfish and shallow. Sam was my favorite character, though, and his story most resonated for me. What a powerful story!

The above was written on 5/24/10. I added the notes below in spring 2017.

I grabbed the audiobook because I didn't remember the details of the story and enjoyed the vocal work by Janet Song on this. WARNING: There are spoilers in my notes!!!

•  Pearl is so sad, she feels so unworthy
• the Japanese - murdered the wheelbarrow puller, raped Mam. No, Pearl! Stay in hiding! Mom's strength - wow. so sad.
• "What can I do?" This got old after a while - Pearl is such a victim. (What did I think of this the first time I read it? My notes above don't indicate.)
• arranged marriages . . . Sam is a good guy, but Vern is only 14 years old! And he has issues . . . 
• conversation with Sam and Pearl - the honesty and closeness - I loved this!
• "None of that Jesus thinking sank into us." - Pearl's observations of the missionaries in Shanghai and how her family got what they wanted without buying in to the beliefs.
• white - the color of death
• Sam's suicide . . . devastating.
• perceptions / jealousy, victimhood, accusations, honesty, built-up resentments
•  ending - what?!?! Pearl is going to Red China to find Joy? Ugh!
• Sisters' story, really.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

I just glanced back over my entries and didn't see this one! Hmmm. . . I read it about a month ago and was very engaged by the story. The Chinese custom of foot-binding fascinates me. It seems so brutal and horrifying, yet it was very important to their culture at one time. We'll discuss it at book club (CMSW) in a few weeks. I hope I remember enough of the details to be able to talk intelligently about it!

The secret writing and messages sent back and forth on the fan really tie the entire story together. I was so glad that the servant girl had taken those items and prevented their destruction. Though I was dismayed by the main character's treatment of her friend Snow Flower, I could understand where her reactions came from.