The Valley of Amazement

By: Amy Tan

Narrated by: Nancy Wu, Joyce Bean, Amy Tan

Length: 24 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best-selling author of The Joy Luck Club Amy Tan brings us her latest novel: a sweeping, evocative epic of two women's intertwined fates and their search for identity - from the lavish parlors of Shanghai courtesans to the fog-shrouded mountains of a remote Chinese village

Shanghai, 1912. Violet Minturn is the privileged daughter of the American madam of the city's most exclusive courtesan house. But when the Ching dynasty is overturned, Violet is separated from her mother in a cruel act of chicanery and forced to become a "virgin courtesan." Half-Chinese and half-American, Violet grapples with her place in the worlds of East and West - until she is able to merge her two halves, empowering her to become a shrewd courtesan who excels in the business of seduction and illusion, though she still struggles to understand who she is.

Back in 1897 San Francisco, Violet's mother, Lucia, chooses a disastrous course as a sixteen-year-old, when her infatuation with a Chinese painter compels her to leave her home for Shanghai. Shocked by her lover's adherence to Chinese traditions, she is unable to change him, despite her unending American ingenuity.

Fueled by betrayals, both women refuse to submit to fate and societal expectations, persisting in their quests to recover what was taken from them: respect; a secure future; and, most poignantly, love from their parents, lovers, and children. To reclaim their lives, they take separate journeys - to a backwater hamlet in China, the wealthy environs of the Hudson River Valley, and, ultimately, the unknown areas of their hearts, where they discover what remains after their many failings to love and be loved. Spanning more than forty years and two continents, The Valley of Amazement transports listeners from the collapse of China's last imperial dynasty to the beginning of the Republic and recaptures the lost world of old Shanghai through the inner workings of courtesan houses and the lives of the foreigners living in the International Settlement, both erased by World War II. A deeply evocative narrative of the profound connections between mothers and daughters, imbued with Tan's characteristic insight and humor, The Valley of Amazement conjures a story of inherited trauma, desire and deception, and the power and obstinacy of love.

©2013 Amy Tan (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

OK but not Tan's best

Would you try another book from Amy Tan and/or the narrators?

I've liked her previous books a lot; this one was OK but not her best

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

The end was reasonably satisfying, but mostly I was more than ready for it to come already

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

Most of the narration was good and easy to listen to, but a few of the women's voices were irritatingly high pitched and babyish. I'm sure they were meant to be that way, based on those characters, but I didn't enjoy hearing them.

Could you see The Valley of Amazement being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

I'm sure it will be made into a movie some time

Any additional comments?

The depiction of the Courtesan House culture in Shanghai in the early 1900's was interesting, but there seemed to be a lot of unnecessary repetition. Some of the description of sexual encounters and seduction are fairly graphic, maybe unnecessarily so. I did get a bit tired of the main character (Violet's) whining about not feeling sufficiently loved. The secondary characters seemed a bit shallow, more like plot devices than people in some cases.

Worth it

Long but good. Really good performances. I really enjoyed listening to this Big thumbs up.

Great title; Marginal book

She rambled with the story. To me it read like a Chinese soap opera set in a classy brothel. So disappointed in Amy Tan.

Classic Amy Tan

If you could sum up The Valley of Amazement in three words, what would they be?

Exotic. Entertaining. Consuming. -- Amy Tan's gift for exposing and explaining human nature burns brightly in this book. As an American, I love reading these books to discover more about Chinese culture. Realizing how much we have in common, and how different our cultures are is always a treat, and an education. Amy's descriptions of even the most minute detail or feeling is artfully crafted with the main character, Violet. I always feel like a fly on the wall and can see the rooms these characters sit in as I glide through each pages. If you've never read an Amy Tan novel, you have truly missed out on a masterwork.

Amy Tan Does It Again

I have read several books by Amy Tan and have enjoyed them all. Her writing brings to life the characters she writes about, as well as the settings where the events take place. Some readers may be put off by the descriptions of life in the courtesan houses, but their existence is historically documented, and the experiences of the women and girls who worked in the houses were not imaginary.

The narration was well done and held my interest throughout the story. If you are a fan of Amy Tan, don't skip this because of some negative reviews. It is well worth reading.

long but worth it!

long but worth it, the detail was amazing...it was a Chinese equivalent of "Memoirs of a Geisha"

Amy Tan Continues to Amaze!

Would you consider the audio edition of The Valley of Amazement to be better than the print version?

The audio is more accessible for people, like myself, who drive alot. I can listen to the story as I wait in traffic or drive long stretches. The different voices are great for differentiating between the different women.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Lulu, she was a strong free wheeling American woman. When life gave her lemons she turned them into something great. She not only prospered, but she grew. Lulu made mistakes, but they were out of love. The best part was she got to see it all again thru her daughter and her grandaughter. What a lovely completion to a life story.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

She sounded genuine. I could actually visualize the different women by the voicing.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, this took me 4 weeks.

Any additional comments?

It was beautiful. Amy Tan writes with great tenderness for her women and her native country. I was engrossed.

Great story for long car ride

Where does The Valley of Amazement rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Amy Tan tells long tale. Loved this book, typical Amy Tan!

What didn’t you like about the narrators’s performance?

The narration was 'choppy' as times, but it didn't take away from the story.

Somewhat romancy, but overall interesting

This is the story of a girl and woman who struggles with identity, as she is abandoned by her mother, and left to the life as a courtesan in turn of the century Shanghai. There's a lot of easy skirting over issues, projecting endless awesomeness unto the main character etc. but the story is unique and well written enough to be worth a read all the same. I would have finished it half way through though.
The narrator did the Chinese very well, I assume. It sounded good. She did have an unpleasant and overly dramatic way of interpreting the characters, especially magic cloud/ gourd. It ended up being distracting and enhancing the feeling of cheap romance novel

Amy Tan should stick to writing

Would you listen to The Valley of Amazement again? Why?

While I loved the story, Amy Tan's monotone reading was distracting

What three words best describe the narrators’s voice?

The professional was GREAT. Amy Tan - NO