The Rejuvenation of a Lost Generation

The Bonesetter’s Daughter is a witty dramatic tale written by Amy Tan that explains the sacrifice women are willing to take for their children; it is a gripping story from the beginning till the end.

In the beginning of the book, we feel Ruth’s annoyance by her mother that is only getting old and confused. Ruth is born and raised in America and doesn’t understand her mother LuLing’s inability to let go of her Chinese culture and Mandarin language and just merge with the society she is living in, especially since her aunt who arrived to America with LuLing is fluent with the English language and is utterly Americanized. She explains her story with her mother throughout the different stages in her life. Although she loves LuLing, Ruth was deeply scared by her as she imposed upon her strict rules and made her feel constantly like an outsider.

In the middle of the book, Ruth who was desperately trying to help LuLing as she struggles with dementia and still manage her personal life and work finds LuLing’s autobiography which she wrote in Mandarin, with a little help from some friends Ruth begins reading the heartbreaking story of her mother’s life and many lost secrets begin to unfold.

We learn how LuLing also struggled as a child because her parents gave her little attention although she was the youngest and the only person that really cared for her was her nanny which she refers to as ‘Precious Aunty’. We also feel her emotions through the different incidents that happened in her life and how she truly blamed herself for Precious Aunty’s miseries especially since she didn’t find out the truth until after her death. Moreover, we find out how strong and brave LuLing really is as she faces many obstacles.

By the end of the book, we learn the moving stories of LuLing and Precious Aunty we also learnt how knowing the truth about her mother helped Ruth understand every confusing thing she did in the past.

The bonesetter’s daughter is a well written book that is uplifting and worth reading. If you have troubles with your mother and your relationship had been lost through generations, I truly advise you to read this book as you will learn that to every story there are two sides.

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1. 

   Staracfan

   Aug 2, 2010

   Wow!!!Looks like a great book. Thanks for the summary :)