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The Bonesetter's Daughter
Oct. 18th, 2025 08:45 pmThe Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan has been on my shelf for a long time. For some reason, I didn't think I was going to enjoy it - but I really did.
The first half is about a 40-something woman called Ruth, who is dealing with a lot of familial issues.
The second half (which is reference on the back of the book as if it's the main part of the story but only comes into play at the halfway point) is the history of her mother growing up in China in the 1930s and 1940s, before moving to America.
Despite the obvious major differences in our backgrounds, I found myself relating very strongly to Ruth, especially in the ways in which she reacted to things, how she responded to the people in her life and what she thought about certain things. The book was quite painful in a lot of ways - both in terms of the things described and also in terms of the things it made me feel. But it's extremely well written, sharply observed and compelling.
After what came before, the ending took me rather by surprise, but in a good way.
I'm very glad I read this.
The first half is about a 40-something woman called Ruth, who is dealing with a lot of familial issues.
The second half (which is reference on the back of the book as if it's the main part of the story but only comes into play at the halfway point) is the history of her mother growing up in China in the 1930s and 1940s, before moving to America.
Despite the obvious major differences in our backgrounds, I found myself relating very strongly to Ruth, especially in the ways in which she reacted to things, how she responded to the people in her life and what she thought about certain things. The book was quite painful in a lot of ways - both in terms of the things described and also in terms of the things it made me feel. But it's extremely well written, sharply observed and compelling.
After what came before, the ending took me rather by surprise, but in a good way.
I'm very glad I read this.
