R E K. (bigstone) - , reviewed on 6/14/2019 + 1438 more book reviews

An awesome read. It tugs the heart as the reader follows Pearl and May from their sheltered spoiled life in Shanghai to America where they begin life with their husbands through arranged marriage. However, as the Japanese or "Monkey people" as they are referred to by the sisters invade China they must flee for their lives leaving behind the beautiful girl image that they had earned. Brutally raped by the invading soldiers, Pearl and her mother deflect attention from the younger May. The sisters survive but May must protect Pearl whose injuries limit her ability to flee. Pearl remembers little of the trip but the brutality of the experience makes it difficult for her to have any man touch her. In addition, life in the U.S. is not what they expected nor what their father had described. This reader empathized with the experiences of the sisters as they began new lives in a new land and the impersonal and often cruel process of people as they went through the immigration process. Very good read that I rate highly.

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