I have a profound love for Amy Tan's literary works, and this particular book is no exception.

The element of magical realism in this book came as a pleasant surprise. I was truly captivated by how Kwan's account of her past life intertwined with the events unfolding for Olivia in the present day.

At the beginning, I didn't have a favorable impression of Kwan. However, as the story progressed, the chapters presented from her perspective became increasingly fascinating, and by the middle of the book, I had completely warmed up to her.

Oh my goodness, Olivia had me extremely frustrated. She constantly boasted about being calm and collected compared to her sister, yet in reality, she often behaved in a highly hysterical manner. I did respect all that she had endured, but her treatment of Kwan was abysmal, she would flip out on Simon without any valid reason, and she always spoke about her mother with an excessive amount of judgment.

Nevertheless, I still liked her as a character, especially because her anxiety was so skillfully portrayed. However, the stark contrast between her perception of herself and the actual reality was truly exasperating.

The Joy Luck Club remains one of Tan's finest works in my eyes, but this book is most definitely worth a read.

Lovely story :)

It wasn't as mindblowing as The Bonesetter's Daughter, but it was good enough to make me stay up until the wee hours just to finish devouring this book.

The story began slowly and took longer than I would have liked to reach the climax. There are still a few unanswered questions that I would have preferred to have answered, such as what was Olivia's father's real name. However, I suppose that in the grand scheme of things, these small questions are insignificant and would have detracted from the main plot.

What won me over was Olivia's final acceptance of her sister and her loyalty. The fact that Kwan never came back was tragic for me. This book has enough heartwarming tragedies to truly touch the reader.

And of course, what was especially magical for me was Amy Tan's unique ability to weave together many loose plot threads by the end of the book to create a seamless fabric, an unassailable truth.

Amy Tan takes a significant turn in The Hundred Secret Senses. She veers away from her usual exploration of the mother/daughter relationship and delves into the complex world of sisterhood.

We are introduced to six-year-old Olivia, a resident of Northern California. She is the only daughter of a bi-racial couple and craves more attention from them. Her worst fears come true when her immigrant father is found to have an older daughter in China. The family decides to bring Kwan over and raise her. Kwan is an eccentric character, full of inexplicable love, and claims to have "yin eyes," which means she can see and talk to the spirits of the dead. Olivia's initial resentment towards Kwan quickly turns to disdain and then to juvenile cruelty. On one occasion, she makes a serious error in judgment that leads to Kwan being sent to a facility where she receives electroshock therapy, which changes the composition of her hair.

Decades pass, and while Olivia grows up, graduates, and gets married, for some reason, she never really matures. As the reader, I find myself completely uninterested in most of what she thinks or has to say. Tan, as is her habit, finds a way to return to China and explore Kwan's (now reincarnational) past, hoping to find a historical resolution to the conflict in her characters' present lives.

I really liked Kwan, but only when Olivia allowed it, which was rather annoying.

I truly had a great affection for The Joy Luck Club. However, when it came to this particular book, I found it extremely difficult to maintain my focus.

It appeared to be rather repetitive, and the characters seemed disappointingly dull.

Perhaps the timing was not right for this work of fiction. I am currently in a phase where I have a strong inclination towards non-fiction. As a result, this book ended up being more of a sleep aid for me.

Maybe I should have given it a better chance. But, after reading approximately 80 pages, I decided to stop. This is something that I would have never even considered doing or admitting to doing 10 years ago.

Alas, why should I endure the struggle of reading a book that I do not enjoy? I'm sorry, Amy Tan.

In high school, I had a friend whose musical taste was exquisitely indie. However, he was secretly a huge Cheryl Crow fan. One day, another friend confronted him about it, and he finally had to come clean.

Well, in the literary world, Amy Tan is kind of like my Cheryl Crow. Her work is so accessible that it might cause some highbrow readers to overlook the great wit and wisdom that lies within her writing. But I, for one, absolutely love how she seamlessly moves narratively between the physical and spiritual worlds. It's as if the line that separates the two is completely irrelevant to her.

She has this amazing ability to create characters and stories that are both grounded in the real world and yet also touch on the deeper, more spiritual aspects of human existence. Her writing is a beautiful blend of the tangible and the intangible, and it never fails to captivate and inspire me.

I think that sometimes we can be too quick to judge a book by its cover, or in this case, an author by the popularity of her work. But with Amy Tan, if you take the time to look beyond the surface, you'll discover a wealth of literary treasures waiting to be unearthed.

Whether or not you're already an Am Tan fan, this book is a fairly interesting and fun read.

It presents a unique exploration of the themes of reincarnation, which gives it a distinct charm. However, I must admit that I did not enjoy this book as much as I did 'Joy Luck Club' or 'Kitchen God's Wife'.

The story, in my opinion, is a bit cheesy at times. But that doesn't take away from the fact that Ms. Tan's writing style is still engaging and captivating.

Despite the minor drawback of the cheesy story, this book still stands out nicely on its own.

Overall, it is a rather enjoyable read that offers a different perspective on life and love through the lens of reincarnation.

I would recommend it to those who are interested in exploring new ideas and stories, especially those related to Asian culture and experiences.

Even if you're not a die-hard Am Tan fan, you might still find something to enjoy in this book.

So, give it a try and see for yourself!

This is one of my favorite books.

Even though it does not belong to a series, I highly recommend reading The Joy Luck Club and The Kitchen God's Wife before delving into this one.

These previous works by Amy Tan offer a great introduction to her unique writing style and provide a profound understanding of Chinese culture.

The Hundred Secret Senses, on the other hand, introduces a much more metaphysical element.

The story weaves together the lives of two sisters, one who has the ability to sense the spirit world and the other who is more grounded in the physical realm.

Their relationship is complex and充满了爱与误解, as they navigate through life's challenges and uncover the secrets of their past.

Tan's writing is as beautiful as ever, painting vivid pictures of the characters and their surroundings.

The Hundred Secret Senses is a wonderful and captivating read that will leave you thinking long after you've turned the last page.

It is a must-read for anyone interested in Chinese culture, family dynamics, or the exploration of the human spirit.

Amy Tan is an extremely talented writer. Her prose is not only beautiful but also captivating. She is an amazing narrator who has the ability to keep the readers engaged.

When I was reading her work and wanted to give up because I couldn't understand the point of all the ghost stories, it was her voice that made me continue listening. The writing is so descriptive that it gives the impression that a story line must be of great importance. However, in the end, it seems to lead nowhere.

There are many themes explored in the story - sisterhood, Chinese-American identity, Chinese history, marriage, and more. The blurb might make it seem like it's mainly a story about sisters, but for me, it was a story about how love, both romantic and between friends, can transcend time and place.

I think if I had read this back in the 90s, I might have rated it higher. But as time has passed, some aspects of the story just haven't aged well. Nevertheless, Amy Tan's writing is still值得欣赏 for its beauty and the way it explores complex themes.

I read The Joy Luck Club years ago (after watching the movie), and now I deeply regret letting so many years pass before picking up her other novels.

I could have been treasuring these books all along. However, perhaps this is a blessing in disguise. Amy Tan's novels demand a certain level of womanly maturity to fully appreciate her stories, which can only be achieved with age and experience. In fact, I believe I should re-read TJLC as there are likely many subtle details that I missed. Oh, the joys of being a naïve teenager.

Anyhoo, The Hundred Secret Senses is told from the perspective of a half-Chinese American woman named Olivia. She lives in CA, is estranged from her husband, has little appreciation for her older half sister from China, and goes on a trip with her sister back to her sister's hometown of Changmian.

I overly simplified the book, but essentially it's a story about a woman at a crossroads in her life. She teeters on the edge of bitterness and ingratitude, yet is in self-denial about it. She actively pretends that she has no problem divorcing her husband after 17 years of marriage and chooses not to open up to her loving and nurturing sister Kwan, despite the fact that Kwan has been more like a warm and affectionate mother to her than her own biological mother.

I gave Amy Tan an extra star just for writing the character Kwan the way she did. Kwan's warmth and positivity, her never-ending love and forgiveness towards her family, coupled with her firm belief in herself and humble confidence, are truly awe-inspiring. My heart ached as I stayed up late last night, flipping through page after page of Kwan's story, both past and present. I would give almost anything to have a sister like her or just a relative like her. She represents what has been missing in my life since I was born, so it was a little difficult to overlook Olivia's ingratitude and immaturity.

Speaking of immaturity, it was interesting to me that Olivia reminded me more of a woman who would have been a teenager/college student in the 80s rather than during the Vietnam era. I'm not sure why, perhaps she just comes across as a younger soul for some reason, or maybe it's because she's 12 years younger than Kwan, so the age difference highlights Olivia's tendency to act like a stereotypical bratty sibling.

That's not to say I didn't like Olivia. In fact, many of the choked-back tears I held came from reading about her deep insecurities and fears of losing her husband to a woman she can't even compete with. That's so unfair, but sometimes that's just the way things are. It's sad that almost two decades passed before Olivia was able to begin dealing with her feelings, and the ending summed that up in a realistic way, rather than giving it the typical Hollywood ending that cheapens otherwise good stories.

And that's one of the reasons I know how much Amy Tan loves the stories she creates. She gives not only her characters respect but also her readers. She gives her characters the space they need to sort through grief, sadness, love, etc., rather than just wrapping everything up neatly and handing it to readers/viewers like so many other books and movies do.

It always makes me angry when they do that.

Speaking of wrapping up, I think I'll do just that with a toast to Amy Tan, one of my new favorite authors.

Cheers!

Here's my blog: https://rebbiereads.wordpress.com/

I found myself deeply resonating with Olivia and her complex mix of anxieties and attitude towards Kwan.

Olivia's inner turmoil and her struggles to understand and deal with Kwan's presence in her life were palpable.

At times, Kwan's stories seemed a bit excessive to me, almost overwhelming.

However, as the narrative unfolded, I gradually came to appreciate and even love Kwan.

Her unique perspective and the way she weaved her tales added a rich layer to the story.

Despite the initial challenges in accepting her, I began to see the beauty and significance in her words and actions.

In the end, it all came together in a wonderful way, leaving me with a sense of satisfaction and a deeper understanding of the characters and their relationships.

The journey of Olivia and Kwan was one that I will not soon forget.

I'm truly finding it rather challenging to assign a rating to this book.

If this were a book solely centered around Kwan, it would undoubtedly merit a 5-star rating. She was an absolutely marvelous character, and I truly grew to have a deep affection for her. I adored her captivating stories, her unwavering confidence, her firmly held beliefs, her remarkable capacity to love - really, everything about her was enchanting.

Regrettably, the main character in this book is not Kwan. Instead, it's the rather selfish and annoying Olivia, who couldn't seem to stop fixating on her ex for even two minutes to truly consider what an amazing sister she had in Kwan. Olivia and Simon were not particularly interesting characters. I simply didn't care about their so-called "love" or their marriage. I wasn't the least bit interested in their marital problems or Olivia's excessive and insane amount of insecurity. They just didn't come across as good people, and for me, they unfortunately transformed what could have been a 5-star book into a mere 3-star one.

That being said, it had a slow start. It was more than 100 pages before I was fully engaged and invested in Kwan's contribution to the story. However, once I was hooked, it became extremely difficult to put the book down. There's a wealth of content regarding death, ghosts, the afterlife, Chinese history, the contrast between capitalism and communism, reincarnation, and superstition. I eagerly looked forward to the parts that detailed Kwan's former life in 1864. In fact, really, anything that had to do with Kwan, which constituted a significant portion of the book, was fascinating. If the entire book had been about Olivia and Simon, I seriously doubt I could have managed to finish it.

The ending was a little bit confusing and rather vague, but I have formulated a theory about it. At one point in the book, I believe Kwan mentioned that in the world of Yin, one may have the option to choose when to return and who to become. My theory is that Kwan chose to become Samantha, Olivia's daughter. Of course, in order to achieve this, she had to experience an earthly death. It just doesn't seem to make much sense that she would enter a cave system that she was familiar with and then have no trace of her ever found. She was far too intelligent for that. Now, whether the superstition surrounding the caves is true or not, I can't say for certain, but I do firmly believe that Kwan was fully aware of what she was doing.

Heartbreaking and yet, it is so very good.

The story revolves around two sisters - Kwan, a superstitious Chinese-born lady, and Libby, a half-Chinese, half-white modern woman. It lays bare the sad reality of sisterhood, filled with an abundance of love and yet, rife with misunderstandings.

It is also magical and surreal, with Kwan introducing beliefs of the supernatural and rebirths. When Libby was six, she gained a new older sister. Her mother brought Kwan, her husband's child who had been abandoned in China, over to the US. Kwan loved Libby wholeheartedly and practically raised her. What makes her special is that she had yin eyes - she could see the dead, their yearnings and longings. Kwan influenced Libby's perceptions on love, relationship, and destiny. Near the end of the novel, Libby realized that there is a huge price to pay to get what she wanted. Kwan reminded her that there were debts they carried forward from their past lives that needed to be settled.

Lately, I have been so very hectic, and Amy Tan's writing was precisely what I needed to feel better. Her words have the power to devastate you, that's for sure. She knows how to write about emotions that are repressed in the name of outward stability. I guess that describes us as we strive for perfection while ignoring our inner turmoil. It is a truly lovely, lovely book and I highly recommend it!