The Hundred Secret Senses by Amy Tan Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Hundred Secret Senses
Book Review: Moving and funny all at the same time
Summary: 5 Stars
For starters, this was the second book I read from Amy Tan. I first read The Joy Luck Club and watched the movie. It was a good book and all, but it didn't do much for me. This book proved otherwise. I absolutely loved it, and now I want to read all of Tan's books. I was hooked from page one, and had a hard time putting the book down at times. Sure, there were a couple of pages that were less then memorable (historical parts of the novel), but that was only a small portion of the novel.
Overall, The hundred secret senses was hilarious and very touching. Amy Tan surely has a very comedic side to her that I love. Not to mention, she is capable of writing parts that could move you to the brink of tears. Mainly, I love how she portrayed her characters. They were really real and I felt a strong connection to them by the end of the novel.
To conclude, read this book if you haven't yet and I assure you (hopefully) that you won't be dissapointed. I have recommended it to my family and friends already, and all of them loved it. Hopefully you will/do too.
Book Review: Intersting book
Summary: 4 Stars
At first I was a bit hesitant to read this book (it was for a class). My only idea of Tan's work is the Joy Luck Club and I associated that with a chick-flick. However, I am glad that I read this book. The Hundred Secret Sense explores the idea of love and relationships and how we are connected by our relationships both in our present time and throughout generations. In the midst of this theme, Tan also deals with issues of inclusion and diversity within modern America.
Furthermore the writing moves well and does not drag.
Book Review: A Hundred Million Pieces
Summary: 5 Stars
I read this book while I was in jail. It was my only light in the darkest of hours. I never got to finish the whole book (because I was released before I finished it) so I bought a copy because the story was interesting enough to resume the rest of the book. Kwan definately was a unique character that sometimes grated on the nerves but she seemed to be the heart of the book. The only part I criticize is how the story flip flopped back and forth from present to past. I enjoyed the present day stories with the interactions between Kwan and her sister. Good book! Book Review: Twists where you're not expecting them...
Summary: 5 Stars
The Hundred Secret Senses refers to Olivia's (the narrator's) Chinese half sister Kwan and her ability to see yin people, people who have died. Kwan came to live with Olivia's mother and siblings when Olivia was 6 and Kwan almost 18. Kwan became her caretaker, which Olivia resented, but through Kwan she learned the Chinese language and much about the Chinese culture. It's only as an adult that Olivia can truly come to appreciate Kwan, when she steps in to help Olivia piece together her failing marriage. And only then does Olivia finally see what a loyal friend Kwan is and has always been.
The ending is a surprising tear jerker that I wasn't suspecting. Very good, very worth reading. Highly recommended.
Book Review: Write What You Know
Summary: 3 Stars
There can be no doubt that Amy Tan is a wonderful author. I enjoy her books and, as a man married to a Taiwanese woman, find words hit home more than the average white American male would tend to experience. Having said that, I feel The Hundred Secret Sense is too similar to The Joy Luck Club in it's words, difficulties, and general feel. While both books are well worth the read, I did not find enough variance between Joy Luck and Secret Senses. I admit this may be unfair, as each book should be taken in a vacuum. But life isn't a vacuum, and one cannot be read without influencing the other.
I should reiterate I did like the book. Several times it made me laugh out loud, something I don't find myself doing all that often while reading on public transportation. The book is easy to read, as she is great in putting words together and writing stories that come from the heart, loaded with meaning that straddle her Chinese and American roots. Her themes are ones I can identify with, at least as far as I can identify with my wife's having experienced much of the same culture clash I believe Tan has experienced.
But the book isn't perfect, by any stretch. Much of the time the story wasn't clear in the direction it was taking. Often it flailed along, not having a true course of action in it's flow. Many of the chapters were thrown together, as if they were observations Tan made in her daily life. I'm not sure what Tan was getting at with this book. Her reliance on unexplainable and randomly adhered to Chinese lore is non-committal at best. If one is to draw anything from that lore, it would be foolish, as the main character doesn't really believe any of it. Perhaps the message is of a confused Chinese-American woman confronted with the realities of life. But then, life is a myriad of confusion regardless of your nationality and country of origin.
Perhaps the book is a manifestation of Tan's difficulty in dealing with the seemingly absurd statements that occasionally come from the Chinese culture - statements such as proclaiming a ghost spirit was using them as a medium last week, or the reason a person is fat is because they have a pair of Buddha gods living in their stomach. I know the feeling, having heard these non-sequiter comments for the better part of 9 years from various in-laws, including the 2 mentioned above. Still, the feeling I get from this book is similar to the one I got from Lost in Translation, where the crux of the story is to say that she is confused, and wallowing in that confused sadness is what she intends to do.
Perhaps it is my preference in books such as Tom Robbins novels that leads me to have difficulty identifying with the main character here. Instead of attempting to move forward, she sidles down in her sorrow more often than not. Then again, it would be far from fair to say Robbins' characters resemble anyone you might meet in real life, where Tan's certainly do.
Even though I read Joy Luck Club over a year ago, it was still too soon to read Hundred Secret Senses. If you haven't read either, I suggest the Joy Luck Club first, then wait a few years to buy this one. While it is good, and I plan on reading more Amy Tan novels in the future, it did not resonate with me as much as her more popular book did. Easy to read, yet repetitive in nature, the book dabbles along, entertaining but then dragging for a while before diving head first into the mysticism that permeates the confused situation the main character finds herself in.