Customer Reviews

The Lily Theater: A Novel of Modern China

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3 star:		(4)
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This books describes in depth the way of life, seen by a child of an intellectual prisoner. This book reveals a lot about the social structure in China. I read the (original) Dutch version, and I can't wait for the English version to come out, so I can order it and give it to my friends.

I'm still reeling after reading this book about a young girl's experience of the Cultural Revolution. Unlike the commonly held view that Mao's revolution was about turning the unfair class structure on its head, Wang reveals that it was more firmly in place than ever despite accusations of "class enemy" and its condemnation of "bourgeois culture".

On top of which, the book is fun to read, with Chinese flair and shockingly outspoken, arresting language. If this was indeed translated from Dutch and not Chinese, my hat goes off to the translator for putting it in such a form that you are constantly reminded that you are in China, not the Occident.

Even though I found the ending just a little over the top, it did not detract for me from a very good read, almost as informative,in my opinion, though from a slightly different perspective, as Wild Swans.

I read about this book in the NY Times Book Review section and it intrigued me because I loved Wild Swans by Jung Chang. This is a different view of growing up under the cultural revolution, emphasizing the class system that Mao was trying to dismantle but which seems to have survived despite his efforts to raise up the peasants and suppress the intellectuals. The book is very affecting, its young heroine (the only child in a reeducation camp for top intellectuals) does not seem to be able to adapt to the cruelty around her, and for this reason finds herself at odds with her country's culture. It's also funny in places. I found it highly worth reading.

The life the book describes is shocking. The political pressure and discrimination. The pursuation and brainwashing of intellectuals. The complete disregard of human life. But still Lian, the maincharacter can find the little joys in her life, and friends. She looks through the politics and sees China as it really was in the seventies.

In Lulu Wang's novel, "The Lily Theater", the reader is captured by the story of a girl coming of age during a struggling time. It was 1972; China's Cultural Revolution was in full swing, and the Communist Party of China was doing everything possible to purge their country of Capitalist and revisionist ideas. The government, then headed by the powerful Mao Zedong, set up many revolutionary prison camps, designed to change the prisoners' ideas away from those with "Western influence". In the novel, a young girl, Lian Yang, is found staying in a Youth Accommodation center while her mother, Yunxiang Yang, serves her sentence in a prison camp. Yunxiang, concerned about her daughter's rapidly spreading skin disease, arranges for her daughter to stay with her in the prison camp for the remainder of the sentence. At the prison camp, located in a rural setting hours from Beijing, Lian became acquainted with many intelligent professors who were her tutors. Two new friends, Professor Qin and Changshan became very close to Lian, helping her with problems, mostly of understanding emotions. Lulu Wang successfully develops each of these relationships, each of which become very important to Lian, especially when she is need of guidance in the unpredictable world of the new communist state. Following Yunxiang's (and subsequently Lian's) release from the prison camp, comes the reality of living in the outside world. Many things were different in the outside world, some of which made Lian wish she were back inside the simpler world of the prison camp. Appearance became an issue to worry about again, and so was socializing with the other girls in her grade and caste. Then, there was Lian's best friend Kim, whose family was in the third (lowest) caste in the society compared to Lian's first (highest) caste status. The author Lulu Wang did an excellent job throughout the entire novel of creating a friendship that saw good times, along with many hard times. Kim tried to shake the role as the class scapegoat and become accepted for her many good qualities with the help of Lian, trying break down the caste barriers. This resulted in the relationship's inevitable fate at the end of the novel. Accompanying Lian's feelings about Kim's situation, were many feelings of her own. Why was her body changing so and why were so many boys harassing her? What was she to think of her emotions and thoughts of the government's rule and laws? Who could she confide in to answer all of her questions? These were all questions running through Lian's head. Lain found sanction in nature sitting in the orchard to think things through. This grand novel, Lulu Wang's first, followed three years of Lian's life into young adulthood. Wang did an exceptional job at portraying Lian's every thought and emotion, portraying what life growing up in the revolution was like. The descriptions of most scenes are vivid, allowing the reader to be swept away. However, some scenes seem to be drawn out too long, loosing the attention of the reader, while illustrating unnecessary details of a situation or place. In essence, this novel powerfully portrays Lian's view and is a recommended for anyone interested in being drawn into a story of the modern history of China.

In Lulu Wang's novel, The Lily Theater, the reader is captured by the story of a girl coming of age during a struggling time. It was 1972; China's Cultural Revolution was in full swing, and the Communist Party of China was doing everything possible to purge their country of Capitalist and revisionist ideas. The government, then headed by the powerful Mao Zedong, set up many revolutionary prison camps, designed to change the prisoners' ideas away from those with "Western influence". In the novel, a young girl, Lian Yang, is found staying in a Youth Accommodation center while her mother, Yunxiang Yang, serves her sentence in a prison camp. Yunxiang, concerned about her daughter's rapidly spreading skin disease, arranges for her daughter to stay with her in the prison camp for the remainder of the sentence. At the prison camp, located in a rural setting hours from Beijing, Lian became acquainted with many intelligent professors who were her tutors. Two new friends, Professor Qin and Changshan became very close to Lian, helping her with problems, mostly of understanding emotions. Lulu Wang successfully develops each of these relationships, each of which become very important to Lian, especially when she is need of guidance in the unpredictable world of the new communist state. Following Yunxiang's (and subsequently Lian's) release from the prison camp, comes the reality of living in the outside world. Many things were different in the outside world, some of which made Lian wish she were back inside the simpler world of the prison camp. Appearance became an issue to worry about again, and so was socializing with the other girls in her grade and caste. Then, there was Lian's best friend Kim, whose family was in the third (lowest) caste in the society compared to Lian's first (highest) caste status. The author Lulu Wang did an excellent job throughout the entire novel of creating a friendship that saw good times, along with many hard times. Kim tried to shake the role as the class scapegoat and become accepted for her many good qualities with the help of Lian, trying break down the caste barriers. This resulted in the relationship's inevitable fate at the end of the novel. Accompanying Lian's feelings about Kim's situation, were many feelings of her own. Why was her body changing so and why were so many boys harassing her? What was she to think of her emotions and thoughts of the government's rule and laws? Who could she confide in to answer all of her questions? These were all questions running through Lian's head. Lain found sanction in nature sitting in the orchard to think things through. This grand novel, Lulu Wang's first, followed three years of Lian's life into young adulthood. Wang did an exceptional job at portraying Lian's every thought and emotion, portraying what life growing up in the revolution was like. The descriptions of most scenes are vivid, allowing the reader to be swept away. However, some scenes seem to be drawn out too long, loosing the attention of the reader, while illustrating unnecessary details of a situation or place. In essence, this novel powerfully portrays Lian's view and is a recommended for anyone interested in being drawn into a story of the modern history of China.

The lily theatre is a really good book about life in China.It's easy to read and very moving

I have studied the cultural revolution for a few years now since I've been learning Chinese. I've learned quite a bit. I learn even more from reading great books such as this. I know already almost everything there is to know but an upclose actual "real"-life experience is breath-taking. Just like almost any book about the cultural revolution. The story of this 12-year-old's story is truly fabulous about her her story growing up in the time during and after the cultural revolution that no one really knows about in the U.S. is absolutely outstanding and will hopefully become more popular and read in the United States. I also hope that more people read other books that teach us about the hardships the chinese had to go through during the cultural revolution or just life growing up in China. One good book based in modern day Beijing on a 17 growing up after the horrible time of the cultural revolution where the restrictions were endless was called Beijing Doll. It focuses more on here feelings with relationships between her friends, guys, and her family. Although I'd recommend it for teenagers because trust me it doesn't really hit adults as well as it does young adults.

But I just want to remind you that The Lily Theatre is absolutely breath-taking!

The story tells of Lian, a 12-year-old girl who accompanies her mother, a history professor at the Teacher's University of Beijing, to a pungent reeducation camp in 1972, the time when Cultural Revolution was at its full swing. Despite the horrid living conditions at the camp, Lian never imagined that she will receive an education from some of the most prominent scholars who were detained at the camp along with her mother. These teachers of all disciplines: mathematics, chemistry, language and literature, took upon themselves to share what they know with young Lian. Lian summarized what she learned from the scholars and delivered "lectures" to frogs and crickets at the pond which she dubbed "The Lily Theater" near the camp site. When she learned behind the camp walls opened her eyes to the lies behind political propaganda and helped her mend her relationship with best friend Kim. Wang's writing style is plain staright-forward. The novel tends to drag toward the end though nevertheless gives a closer look at life during and after the notorious Cultural Revolution. 3.4 stars.

Set in 1970's Red China, The Lily Theatre is the first novel for author, Lulu Wang. It tells the story of a young girl growing into womanhood in a country torn apart by politics, philosophy and petty suspicion. The book takes it's title from the narrator's 'special place', where she finds voice - a pond inside the prison camp where the opening chapters take place.

The best scenes in this novel are those focussing on the narrators experience of the education system, and Wang creates a surreal picture of the rapid changes that it undergoes. She is able to tease out the narrator's discomfort, and the difficulties of going against the accepted norm in a system where the children begin to act out the politics of the nation in a microcosm.

The writing style clearly reflects the problems of translated text - it is translated to English, having been written in Dutch by an author whose first language is a Chinese dialect - but it has a handy glossary at the end and a few useful notes on linguistic style. It has a somewhat stilted flow (one of our readers used the word 'amateurish', but had the good nature to blush as she said it!) and it reads like a first novel.

The unfortunate ending, which had the potential to be very powerful, seems to be rushed, and ultimately it loses much of it's impact in it's haste. On the whole we were disappointed with the book, but fascinated by the discussion it generated - mainly centred on our own lack of knowledge of the Cultural Revolution in China. Although not as satisfying as other novels on Chinese culture (The Wild Swans springs readily to mind), The Lily Theatre is thought provoking and we recommend it for bookclubs who relish the discussion.