Román sleduje Alvu, polovičnú Číňanku, narodenú americkej imigrantke v Číne; odlišné predstavy o šťastí — matka ho hľadá mimo Ameriky, Alva ho chce nájsť v Amerike — vedú k narastajúcemu napätiu, ktoré sa vyostrí príchodom bohatého podnikateľa.
Príbeh sa odohráva v roku 2007 a vykresľuje premenu Číny, rozdiely medzi generáciami a vplyv ekonomických zmien na ľudí; mladé dievča pritom túži po iných zážitkoch, ktoré ju privádzajú do nebezpečných situácií.
Kniha je sondou do ľudskej mysle a kultúrnej inakosti, plná ťaživých emócií a autentického hlasu autorky, ktorá čitateľa vtiahne do deja.
Debut ponúka množstvo zvratov, čitateľná je na posedenie a napriek pomalšiemu začiatku získava hodnotenie 4/5.
Set against the backdrop of developing modern China, this mesmerizing literary debut is part coming-of-age tale, part family and social drama, as it follows two generations searching for belonging and opportunity in a rapidly changing world.Shanghai, 2007:… ...
Set against the backdrop of developing modern China, this mesmerizing literary debut is part coming-of-age tale, part family and social drama, as it follows two generations searching for belonging and opportunity in a rapidly changing world.
Shanghai, 2007: Fourteen-year-old Alva has always longed for more. Raised by her American expat mother, she’s never known her Chinese father, and she is certain a better life awaits them in America. But when her mother announces her engagement to their wealthy Chinese landlord, Lu Fang, Alva’s hopes are dashed. She plots for the next best thing: the American School in Shanghai. Upon admission, though, Alva is surprised to discover an institution run by an exclusive community of expats and the ever-wilder thrills of a city where foreigners can ostensibly act as they please.
1985: In the seaside city of Qingdao, Lu Fang is a young married man and a lowly clerk in a shipping yard. Although he once dreamed of a bright future, he is now one of many casualties in his country’s harsh political reforms. So when China opens its doors to the first wave of foreigners in decades, Lu Fang’s world is split wide open after he meets an American woman who makes him confront difficult questions about his current status in life and how much will ever be enough.
In a stunning reversal of the east-to-west immigrant narrative and set against China’s political history and economic rise, River East, River West is an intimate family drama and a sharp social novel. Alternating between Alva and Lu Fang’s points of view, this is a profoundly moving exploration of race and class, cultural identity and belonging, and the often-false promise of the American Dream.
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION SHORTLISTED FOR THE CAROL SHIELDS PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE MAYA ANGELOU BOOK AWARD FINALIST FOR THE STANFORDS' FICTION WITH A SENSE OF PLACE AWARD LONGLISTED FOR THE DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD LONGLISTED FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BOOK AWARD
