This is the first book by GAIL TSUKIYMA that I have read and I look forward to reading more. This story is set in Mao’s communist China in the once prosperous small town of Dongshan.. Life was getting harder all the time for Wei’s family but they were managing under the new rule of the land that began by Mao ten years earlier until one letter changed everything overnight. As Wei’s only son Sheng, a high school history teacher, is sent to a “reeducation” camp we get to know each of the family members over the next year as they lose contact with Sheng and deal with this blow to their everyday lives. Each of the characters shares his thoughts and feelings in their own voice. This writing style allows one to identify with the characters (especially Sheng’s wife and 6 year-old son) as the setting and political situation is described through their eyes. I found the introduction of two additional characters (Suyin and Tian) very thought provoking as it illustrates the idea that people come into our lives for a reason if we are only open to them.
The author does not give us a neat, happy ending but rather tells it like it is with the emphasis on the importance of family relationships and hope to help us accept difficult situations and go forward.

The setting for the story of Rachel Lockyer and her dead child is England in the mid 17th century where life for the masses is fraught with hardship. The author provides a detailed picture and historical context that draws you into the lives of both the women of the period and the Levelers, a democratic political action group who emphasized popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. In the course of the trial all of these themes come into focus as Rachel’s love affair is with a leader of the ‘leveling’ movement.

Stacia Brown’s book acquainted me with a period in history with which I was not familiar as I saw it through the eyes of Rachel during the course of her ordeal.

This was an informative and captivating book for me and I found the relationships among the women of special interest.