Customer Reviews

The Hundred Secret Senses

5 star:		(142)
4 star:		(57)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I put off other things on my weekend to finish this book because I was so involved in it, and I've been recommending it to other readers since finishing it. This book was more beautiful to me than The Joy Luck Club, but it took me a little longer to get into the book and realize how amazing it was.

The plot is summarized well on Amazon. While reading, I had a little trouble getting into Kwan's Miss Banner previous-lifetime stories. I, like Olivia, thought Kwan was a kooky dreamer. Of course, her stories have a deeper meaning, and I urge you to stick with them so see Tan's beautiful resolution of the relationship between Olivia and Kwan.

In the beginning of the book, I thought Olivia knew herself the best, and that Kwan was just an overly-emotional meddler. As the book progressed, Tan convined me of the depth of Kawn's character, and my feelings about everyone in the novel changed. Tan is a masterful storyteller for taking me in this journey of discovery.

This history of China is well-treated in this novel, and I wanted to learn more about the Taiping Rebellion when I finished. Don't be put off if you don't like historical fiction, though, because I'm not usually a fan, but I found myself entirely wrapped up in this.

The Hundred Secret Senses starts off very simply, the story of sisters reuniting from extremely different cultures. The sisters are Olivia and Kwan, born of the same father, neither knew each other until Kwan arrives in America as the last dying wish of their father. So the tale begins...

The reader will journey with Kwan through many past lives and her communications to 'yin people'. The yin people are those that have died and communicate to her ~ ghosts. The ever reserved and practical Olivia, finds Kwan's behaviour and beliefs odd and unbelievable.

The Hundred Secret Senses follows the lives of Olivia and Kwan as they create and define their relationship. It is the story of coming to terms with ones self, as well as accepting those around you for who they are. The reader will participate in the great struggle that Olivia has with this challenge.

The reader will be challenged to question their own beliefs of the yin people or the afterlife. I only recently discovered Amy Tan and The Hundred Secret Senses is equally as brilliant as The Bonesetters Daughter. I would recommend this novel!

I am very fond of JOY LUCK CLUB. I have to think of it as a first class display of wonderful writing. And I really enjoyed KITCHEN GOD'S WIFE which is an excellent example of telling a story. However with THE HUNDRED SECRET SENSES, Amy Tan is aiming at a higher target and is taking a more honest look at herself, at people, at life and at the spiritual nature of humankind than previously. That she sometimes struggles to achieve her aims (and for sure this book is not as smoothly written as JOY LUCK CLUB) and that there are a few areas that could be strengthened, does not give me enough reason to lower my rating of this novel -- for she does what few writers ever do and reaches out for the truth of existence. She has gone from an excellent writer to a special writer, and in doing so enters into a very select group of American writers. In reading THE HUNDERED SECRET SENSES, I wondered if Amy Tan had read any of Philip K Dick's later novels, for I know of no other American author that was so willing to honestly grapple with existential material with such aggressiveness and sensitivity. Forty years from now we may look at this novel as a turning point in Amy Tan's career. She has shown now that she has both the technique as well as the vision to be one of the most important novelists of our time. The Hundred Secret Senses rises above the limits of both THE BAY AREA culture and AMERICAN culture into the realm of serious observation and representation.

Amy Tan, who has written many books including the Joy Luck Club, and the childrens book, The Chinese Cat, has once again expressed her story through a Chinese persons eyes. The Hundred Secret Senses is a delightful book full of ides religion, love, death, and lessons in life.

Olivia, the main character and narrator of this tale, begins by telling about the arrival of her half sister Kwan, from China. Kwan is nearly 18 when she comes to the US. She is unable to communicate in English and knows nothing of the American lifestyle. Olivia, her only companion, albeit unwillingly, is soon filled with Chiness folklore, the Chinese language, and ghosts. Yes, Kwan has Yin eyes, or in other words, the ability to see the deceased that have traveled to the Yin World. Even though the whole ghost thing may be a recurring theme, Tan has an interesting way of adding her own twist.

The plot switches back and forth from Olivia, Simon (Olivia's husband), and Kwan, to Kwans growing experiences in her past life, which she can remember. Each time the section ends at a high point, causing you to want to read on, but unlike some novels who use this stratagy to pull you through boring parts, this book is always exiting, thus letting you enjoy every bit of the book.

The style of writing Amy Tan uses is very intriguing and catchy from the start. You keep reading and reading just to find out what happens next. The storyline is so amazing and different that everyone must read it.

The feeling you get when you finish this book is a sense of hope. In a way, the story leaves hanging, and you have to decide for yourself what really happened.

Hundred Secret Senses is yet another Amy Tan novel that focuses on the cross cultural strains felt by Chinese Americans. In this novel, Olivia, a daughter of a white American mother and a Chinese father grows up in California as an All-American girl. When Olivia's father dies, a half sister, Kwan is brought from China to share Olvia's bedroom and life. Kwan, is steeped in the rich traditional Chinese pantheon of ghosts and yin people--this she freely shares with a relustant Olivia. All throughout young Olivia's relationship with Kwan, Chinese ghosts wander, until Olivia has learned Chinese and much about traditional Chinese life and culture. Amy Tan is very clever in forming Olivia's character, she works from the inside and outside through Kwan's observations.When Olvia leaves for college and hopefully a new life, she finds Simon Bishop. Simon is also of mixed Chinese heritage and also is haunted by the modern ghost of a former girl friend killed in a skiing accident. Olivia pursues Simon and the couple marries, however the partner's ghosts haunt the marriage, and as the story begins, Olivia and Simon are seeking a divorce. It is so interesting to see how Amy Tan intertwines Chinese ghosts into an essential American story of lost love. She allows Kwan to cross the barriers of both cultures and also Olivia's mind to show that ghosts are real and are effect everyone. Deep emotions and feelings are revealed in her books and that is one of reasons they are so compelling. Although this is the third novel about Chinese Americans and their cross cultural lives, it is really about anyone's life, as Amy Tan writes about real emotions and feelings.

When I first began to read this book, I was glad I was reading a separated woman's realistic perspective about her present situation. It's a love story without the fluff, and I thought it was easy to relate to. Though cynical, Oliva is perceptive and intelligent and I found myself sympathizing with her predicament. I too, was annoyed by Kwan and her endless yin stories. I even skipped many of them in the beginning, only to find myself compelled to read and appreciate them toward the end. Amy Tan does a beautiful job bringing together Olivia's mind and spirit to make her whole again. Reading this book became a wonderful experience as I grew to appreciate Kwan at the same rate as Olivia. I relate to Amy Tan's heroines better than any author I've read. She is a moving and amazing writer.

Amy Tan's unique storytelling ability draws us into her vivid, sense-assulting world. I found this book difficult to get through in the beginning, but its shattering conclusion made me immediately want to read the whole thing over again. This is one of the most powerful books I've ever read. Tan explores the issue of reincarnation, while taking the reader on an exotic Chinese journey. Besides being thought-provoking and haunting, "100 Secret Senses" is also hysterically funny at points. I disagree with Amazon's classification of the book as a "Young Adult" novel. To me, it was too sexually explicit and wordy for most teens. I recommend reading this book if you are looking for a story that will paint vivid, lasting images in your mind, and leave you wistful for more.

There can be no doubt that Amy Tan is a wonderful author. I enjoy her books and, as a man married to a Taiwanese woman, find words hit home more than the average white American male would tend to experience. Having said that, I feel The Hundred Secret Sense is too similar to The Joy Luck Club in it's words, difficulties, and general feel. While both books are well worth the read, I did not find enough variance between Joy Luck and Secret Senses. I admit this may be unfair, as each book should be taken in a vacuum. But life isn't a vacuum, and one cannot be read without influencing the other.

I should reiterate I did like the book. Several times it made me laugh out loud, something I don't find myself doing all that often while reading on public transportation. The book is easy to read, as she is great in putting words together and writing stories that come from the heart, loaded with meaning that straddle her Chinese and American roots. Her themes are ones I can identify with, at least as far as I can identify with my wife's having experienced much of the same culture clash I believe Tan has experienced.

But the book isn't perfect, by any stretch. Much of the time the story wasn't clear in the direction it was taking. Often it flailed along, not having a true course of action in it's flow. Many of the chapters were thrown together, as if they were observations Tan made in her daily life. I'm not sure what Tan was getting at with this book. Her reliance on unexplainable and randomly adhered to Chinese lore is non-committal at best. If one is to draw anything from that lore, it would be foolish, as the main character doesn't really believe any of it. Perhaps the message is of a confused Chinese-American woman confronted with the realities of life. But then, life is a myriad of confusion regardless of your nationality and country of origin.

Perhaps the book is a manifestation of Tan's difficulty in dealing with the seemingly absurd statements that occasionally come from the Chinese culture - statements such as proclaiming a ghost spirit was using them as a medium last week, or the reason a person is fat is because they have a pair of Buddha gods living in their stomach. I know the feeling, having heard these non-sequiter comments for the better part of 9 years from various in-laws, including the 2 mentioned above. Still, the feeling I get from this book is similar to the one I got from Lost in Translation, where the crux of the story is to say that she is confused, and wallowing in that confused sadness is what she intends to do.

Perhaps it is my preference in books such as Tom Robbins novels that leads me to have difficulty identifying with the main character here. Instead of attempting to move forward, she sidles down in her sorrow more often than not. Then again, it would be far from fair to say Robbins' characters resemble anyone you might meet in real life, where Tan's certainly do.

Even though I read Joy Luck Club over a year ago, it was still too soon to read Hundred Secret Senses. If you haven't read either, I suggest the Joy Luck Club first, then wait a few years to buy this one. While it is good, and I plan on reading more Amy Tan novels in the future, it did not resonate with me as much as her more popular book did. Easy to read, yet repetitive in nature, the book dabbles along, entertaining but then dragging for a while before diving head first into the mysticism that permeates the confused situation the main character finds herself in.

The Hundred Secret Senses refers to Olivia's (the narrator's) Chinese half sister Kwan and her ability to see yin people, people who have died. Kwan came to live with Olivia's mother and siblings when Olivia was 6 and Kwan almost 18. Kwan became her caretaker, which Olivia resented, but through Kwan she learned the Chinese language and much about the Chinese culture. It's only as an adult that Olivia can truly come to appreciate Kwan, when she steps in to help Olivia piece together her failing marriage. And only then does Olivia finally see what a loyal friend Kwan is and has always been.

The ending is a surprising tear jerker that I wasn't suspecting. Very good, very worth reading. Highly recommended.

THE HUNDRED SECRET SENSES by Amy Tan

THE HUNDRED SECRET SENSES by Amy Tan uses a similar pattern which her previous books seem to follow, in which she starts the story in America with characters that are full- or part Chinese, and have a relative or two that tells them stories of the old country. In Tan's most creative book, she introduces the reader to Olivia Laguni, whose father was Chinese and mother was white. Laguni is her stepfather, her father having died when she was only a toddler. Obviously, Laguni at one point adopts her and her brothers, giving them a new name and in essence wiping out her ties to her Chinese family.

Then, along comes Kwan. From that point on, Olivia feels tormented by this half sister. By this time, Olivia's father has been gone for years now. But Kwan comes to America from China to become part of their family forever. A much older sister, Kwan brings to Olivia stories of the old country, for Kwan is the product of Olivia's father and his first wife, all of whom were living in China. Although Olivia considers herself Chinese, her ties are with her birth country of America, and she finds it very hard to relate to her older sister who seems to be more mother than sister as Olivia grows into adulthood. Kwan is there to take care of her while her mother is somewhat absent from Olivia's life. And part of Kwan's mothering is telling Olivia stories about a strange world - where she sees and talks to ghosts.

Kwan's impact on Olivia is obvious, in ways that Olivia could never admit. But as the reader sees, Olivia's relationship with Kwan grows in strength as they grow older, and especially when they make a trip to China, along with Olivia's estranged husband Simon. After years of listening to Kwan's stories of a previous life in 1800's China, this world comes to life as they explore this land that is Olivia's heritage.

THE HUNDRED SECRET SENSES was not my favorite Amy Tan book. There were a lot of elements that made it difficult to fully enjoy this story, including the paranormal facets that were part of Kwan's character. Having said this, I ended the book understanding what Tan's message was in this story and I felt very satisfied. It is not a book I highly recommend to all readers, but I feel that if one is patient enough to get through the stories that Kwan tells about her past life, one will be rewarded at the very end.