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.

Heartwrenching

Amy Tan does it again! She knows how to pull at your heartstrings and she does so in a way that makes you want more. Violet's life journey is heartbreaking and just when you think it can't get any worse, it does. Violet is a strong woman that doesn't let anyone and anything bring her down.

what a beautiful story

I loved this book. it painted a story of a timeless love and the saga of a Chinese-American woman, her American mother and her Chinese American daughter. Their searches for each over many years pulled at my heart. I also was intrigued by the history of Shanghai from the turn of the 20th century to World War II. A lot to think about.

Fabulous book

I loved the unfolding of three generations of Chinese/American women. Highly recommend! I was very sad to have to finish this book.

Entertaining and informative

One is drawn through the story with all of its tragedy and joy. Ms. Tan is a fine writer who with words paints a vivid world into which she transports her reader. The insight into the Chinese culture and thoughts of women make the book doubly valuable.

Subpar for Amy Tan

I always enjoy Amy Tan books but I found this one rather repetitious , characters were not fully developed. Im all I was a little disappointed.

You won't miss much if you skip it

Any additional comments?

I've read an enjoyed four of Amy Tan's earlier books. Maybe it's me moving on. Maybe it's Ms Tan moving on. Whatever the cause, my enjoyment has diminished with each successive book. I'm at the point of wondering if it's time to reread The Joy Luck Club and The Kitchen God's Wife to reevaluate my strong affinity for those works.

This is the first Tan novel I've listened to on tape. I despised the stilted narration in the early chapters in Violet's voice. I barely hung in to finish the book. The only chapter I thought was acceptably narrated was close to the end, the chapter describing Lucretia's later life. I still can't tell if the narration destroyed my enjoyment of the story or if narration and character development equally disappointed. Fundamentally, I didn't feel much connection to the characters and their struggles, didn't understand and accept their reactions to life events, and couldn't sympathize deeply with their plights because their actions didn't feel authentic. The Valley of Amazement was entirely too much of a soap opera, where the characters repeat stupid life mistakes and wallow in the misery that results.

The background material about life in a Shanghai courtesan house was interesting as far as it went, which wasn't far enough. Autobiography of a Geisha did a marginally better job of describing the life of a courtesan and the individual's acceptance and reaction to that life. Yes, I know, that was an autobiography about a geisha in Japan, not a novel. It felt so much more authentic to me without sacrificing my sympathy for the geisha.

The final indignity was the ending. The story just stopped. Grrr.

better than expected

after I read the other reviews I wondered if I'd get through it. Yes it was too long and the generations got confusing at the end, but it was a good story and seemed to give an authentic view of life at that time. I enjoyed it once I got past the tedious opening chapters.

Compelling Throughout

Amy Tan's readers will enjoy this, but so will those who enjoy family stories with women as central characters and an interesting setting and time period.

Almost as good as her other novels.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

If you have a choice of other Amy Tan novels, I would recommend starting there.

Excellent book, well-researched period piece.

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

Loved this book!

What did you like best about this story?

I enjoyed the voices and the accents seemed just right. Excellent descriptions and detail.
Great portrayal of China during this period in history. Gave real feeling of life in a "House of Pleasure", with interactions of the women, their feelings about the male visitors, but also the venality of the characters.