by Anchee Min
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| List Price: | $14.00 |
| Average Rating: |  |
| Lowest New Price: | $4.95 |
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Product Description
Reveals the author's experiences in China during the final years under Mao and conveys the oppressive brutality that was endured as well as the resilience of human spirit that perpetuated survival throughout the nation. Reprint. NYT.
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
 It was okay, 2008-05-23
From the start of the book the reader is enveloped with several odd concepts and aspects of communism and the Chinese culture that many may find simply odd. This is one of the books most fascinating qualities that make it partly likable. My problems with the book come primarily from Min's raw and almost poetic writing style. At times her simple sentence structure was a major drawback that led to a choppy feeling and rough delivery. I felt that her memoir would have been more appealing if she had spent less time dwelling on descriptions that were in many cases not necessary. Overall this book in my opinion deserved three out of five stars. I will undoubtedly recommend this novel to others for the reason that this story is one of a kind and at many points heartwarming.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Interesting prose in spite of itself, 2007-12-27
Red Azalea is a compelling memoir, even though the writing is not always engaging. The prose relies on simple declarative sentences and often seems stilted. One observation follows closely upon another; thus, a description of setting might be followed immediately by a description of mortal danger, all in the same even, subject-verb syntax. You feel like you are reading a translation, and, in a sense, you probably are, since Anchee Min knew no English when she came to the U.S. in 1984, although the memoir was written in English. (Red Azalea was published in 1994.) Interestingly, she does not use quotation marks for a character's speech, but does use them for the numerous quotations from Chairman Mao, which has the effect of making Mao a powerful presence in the book. Two things make the book compelling. One is the sheer force of the events of the Cultural Revolution, particularly Min's depiction of her childhood and of her time on Red Fire Farm. The other is her eye for detail, like the bright red underwear hung out to dry in the spartan barracks of the collective farm. Min's recollections of sexual repression (and expression) during the Cultural Revolution are interesting. Such sexual puritanism is exactly what George Orwell's character Julia rebels against in the totalitarian society of his novel 1984, written in 1949, the year Mao came to power.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
umm..., 2007-10-31
I'm not really sure what to make of this book. It was very powerful and personal. It's unlike any other book i've read because it something that has actually happened. The events in the book are mind blowing in a way that makes you want to keep reading. I would reccomend this book for someone who is ready to read a story that can overwhelm you.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
 Excellent., 2007-09-04
I finished the book in 2 days...I could've finished it in one but I'm a student so I couldn't finish it as early as planned. However, I love this book! I love Anchee Min..she is definetly my favorite author. I bought almost all her books. One of the book I really liked is Empress Orchid.
2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Good but not as good as Empress Orchid, 2007-08-30
Having read Empress Orchard I found this written in a more juvenile way. Perhaps the author was a younger and less sophisticated writer at the time. Good, but not fantastic
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