Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu
Reviewed by: Deb Alig, Circulation Assistant
Genre: Historical Fiction
Suggested Age: Adult
What is this book about? Peach Blossom Spring is the story of three generations of the Chinese Dao family who are in search of a permanent home from the late 1930s until 2005. Dao Xiaowen was married to Shui Meilin and they had a young son named Dao Renshu. Dao Xiaowen’s older brother, Longwei, was married to Xue Wenling, and they had two daughters, Liling and Lifen. Dao Xiaowen was killed in the war with the Japanese leaving Meilin to raise Renshu with the help of Longwei. As the Japanese raid their homeland during WWII, the Dao family must relocate. They scramble to seek shelter and to search for a new place to live. It is during one of these raids that Liling, Renshu’s favorite cousin, suffocates in a cave. Renshu, Meilin, and Wenling never recover from Liling’s death. After this tragedy, Longwei insists that the family move to Shanghai by way of steamer ship. Meilin agrees that she and Renshu will join the family on the ship, but she changes her mind and they do not board. Instead she guides Renshu up into the hills in search of her family’s compound. To her dismay, her childhood home has been destroyed by the Japanese, and she and Renshu decide to head for Shanghai in search of their family. Following WWII, the Chinese engage in a Civil War. The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party. Fearing the Communists, Meilin and Renshu leave the mainland and head for Taiwan. Meilin makes her home in Taiwan, and Renshu leaves for the United States following his graduation from National Taiwan University. He receives a scholarship to study engineering at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. Though he is happy to be in the United States, he is fearful of socializing with Chinese immigrants and engaging in Chinese politics. He fears for the safety of his mother in Taiwan. Dao Renshu changes his name to Henry Dao and he marries an American girl named Rachel. He becomes a citizen, they move to Los Alamos, New Mexico where he works for Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, and they have a child named Lily. Though Lily wants to know her Chinese heritage, Henry is reluctant to share. He wants to protect her from what he fears can harm her, and he does not want to talk about his traumatic childhood. When his mom passes away, Lily and Henry go to Taiwan to lay her to rest. It is in Taiwan that Henry decides to share with Lily some of her Chinese heritage.
My review: The title of this novel is from an ancient Chinese fable that Meilin shares with Renshu. The fable is etched on a scroll that Meilin carries with her. The scroll pictures an old fisherman who happens upon a peach grove in full blossom. The fisherman enters the grove and discovers a village of paradise where all of the citizens are happy and they have everything they want and need. The fisherman is welcome to stay, but if he chooses to leave, he may never return. So the fisherman decides to stay. Throughout the story, Meilin shares a variety of fables with Renshu, Liling, and Lifen. These fables are a great addition to this novel. I also liked how the author included locations, dates, and maps in addition to the chapters. This is my favorite novel so far that I have read for FDL Reads. If this book sounds appealing, give this picture book a try: Peach Blossom Spring by Fergus M. Bordewich
Rating: 5/5
Three words that describe this book: historical, engaging, traumatic
Give this a try if you like… Pachinko by Lee Min-jin, Shanghai Girls by Lisa See, White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht
If you are interested in viewing East Asian Scroll Paintings, visit https://scrolls.uchicago.edu/view-scroll/53
