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Summary
Summary
Winner of the YALSA Best Book AwardNot quite five years old in 1911 -- a time of revolution and transformation in China -- Third Sister Ailin rebels against the torturous tradition of foot binding. She feels no remorse when this causes the family of her intended husband to break the marriage agreement. But as she enters adolescence, Ailin realizes for the first time how powerless a girl of good family with no prospect of marriage is in Chinese society.For ages 12 and up.
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 7 Up-Ailin , the third sister and final daughter in the wealthy Tao family, is so full of spirit that she refuses to submit to having her feet bound like her older sisters and nearly every other woman in her family going back for generations. When her engagement to a local family's young son is broken because of her "big feet," her father's support becomes more important than ever. In search of a respectable option for a high-born girl in 1911 Chinese society, her father sends her to public school run by foreign missionaries, where she shows a talent for languages. But when her father tragically dies and Big Uncle becomes head of the family, she's forced to choose between a nunnery, a peasant's life, or worse yet-becoming a concubine. With a courage fueled by grief, she forges her own path as nanny for a foreign family, eventually finding her way to America and a life she never dreamed possible. Emily Woo Zeller narrates Namioka's tale (Delacorte, 1999) of female triumph with lyricism and a strong grasp of character. She weaves in and out of the varying character voices with ease, making the title useful for whole group or individual listening. Written as a flashback, the story is perfect for middle grade listeners interested in Chinese culture. With a cursory allusion to the political changes in the country, younger listeners get a clear picture of the actual events happening during the time, but older students may want more thorough explorations into the role of women and the political climate at the beginning of the century.-Shanna Miles, South Atlanta Educational Complex, GA (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
A gifted interpreter of Chinese and Chinese-American culture, Namioka (Yang the Youngest and His Terrible Ear) sets this gripping historical novel in early-20th-century Nanjing, as Western influence and political revolution threaten tradition. The irrepressible third daughter in a wealthy upper-class family, four-year-old Ailin resists having her feet bound and her progressive father concedes, over the protests of her grandmother and mother. This decision leaves Ailin without a clear future, as the family her parents have arranged for her to marry into breaks off the engagement ("She can always become an acrobat and street entertainer," her mother says despairingly). Still flying against convention, Ailin's father later sends her to a missionary school run by foreign "Big Noses," where she learns English and other subjects her grandmother dismisses as "useless." But when her father dies, the new head of the familyÄAilin's volatile uncleÄstops Ailin's education and offers her the only three choices suitable for a woman with unbound feet: becoming a nun, a concubine or a farmer's wife. Ailin creates her own destiny through events that are as dramatic as they are credible. Namioka weaves in just enough political history to help readers understand the turbulent climate, and her writing is so atmospheric and closely informed that it appears to offer an insider's perspective on a vanished way of life. Narrated by Ailin in flashback, this colorful novel has the force and intensity of a memoir. Ages 12-up. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
In early twentieth-century China, Ailin's liberal father allows her to avoid the tradition of foot-binding, but a broken engagement makes her family fear for her future. Ailin's intelligence and hard work--and a lot of luck--lead her to a new life in America. The novel contains fascinating if intrusive historical detail, but the flat prose keeps Ailin at a distance from the reader. From HORN BOOK Fall 1999, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Namioka (Den of the White Fox, 1997, etc.) offers readers a glimpse of the ritual of foot-binding, and a surprising heroine whose life is determined by her rejection of that ritual. Ailin is spirited'her family thinks uncontrollable'even at age five, in her family's compound in China in 1911, she doesn't want to have her feet bound, especially after Second Sister shows Ailin her own bound feet and tells her how much it hurts. Ailin can see already how bound feet will restrict her movements, and prevent her from running and playing. Her father takes the revolutionary step of permitting her to leave her feet alone, even though the family of Ailin's betrothed then breaks off the engagement. Ailin goes to the missionary school and learns English; when her father dies and her uncle cuts off funds for tuition, she leaves her family to become a nanny for an American missionary couple's children. She learns all the daily household chores that were done by servants in her own home, and finds herself, painfully, cut off from her own culture and separate from the Americans. At 16, she decides to go with the missionaries when they return to San Francisco, where she meets and marries another Chinese immigrant who starts his own restaurant. The metaphor of things bound and unbound is a ribbon winding through this vivid narrative; the story moves swiftly, while Ailin is a brave and engaging heroine whose difficult choices reflect her time and her gender. (Fiction. 9-14)
Booklist Review
Gr. 7^-10. In 1911 China is experiencing dramatic cultural and political changes. And in the home of young Ailin, a quieter but equally impacting revolution is taking place--a war against tradition. Ailin enjoys a privileged childhood, but as a girl, she is denied what she wants most: a voice in her future. Women are expected to be seen and not heard, skilled in domestic arts rather than educated, and to bind their feet--all to ensure a good marriage. Ailin rebels, but freedom comes with a price. Exiled from her own people, she enters a world where all she has been taught to value is misunderstood, even despised. Her journey, though often lonely and difficult, brings her to America and, ultimately, a life of happiness, inner strength, and self-respect. In lyrical, descriptive prose, Namioka compassionately portrays a young girl's coming-of-age in a repressive, challenging time. The characters have exceptional depth, and readers will gain appreciation and respect for the many transitions in Chinese history and culture. An author's note discusses the history of foot-binding and other customs that women around the world have endured in the name of fashion or tradition. A book that is both emotionally and historically illuminating. --Shelle Rosenfeld