Snow Flower And The Secret Fan [Import] [Paperback]

Lisa See (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Random House; Later Printing edition (2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0747580669
• ISBN-13: 978-0747580669
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (824 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,912,023 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

273 of 289 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing Story of Women's Friendships, August 14, 2005

By 

Elizabeth Hendry (New Jersey USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (Hardcover)

Lisa See's Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is an engrossing and fascinating story of women's friendships in nineteenth century rural China. This is an excellent, well-written novel--fascinating on so many levels. Lily, the narrator of the novel is in her eighties, looking back on her life. She shares the stories of her foot binding, nu shu, the secret women's writing, and the various formally women's friendships that society enforced. Lily's sister participated in a sworn sisterhood, where a group of young women formed a friendship that was to last until marriage, but Lily is paired with one girl, Snow Flower, her laotong or "old same." Lily and Snow Flower have a love that is stronger than all of her other relationships--and it causes them both more heartbreak. The novel is really the story of their friendship, its depths, its deceits, its strengths--and it is a fascinating read about a society so different from our own. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan reminds me in many ways of The Red Tent in that it explores female friendship in a setting much different than any contemporary one. A fascinating read.

322 of 349 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sympathy with Both Women and Men, July 9, 2005

By 

Virginia J. Tufte (Beverly Hills, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (Hardcover)

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan: A Novel is surely intended for any reader who likes a compelling, historically-set, moving, suspenseful story. I have been a fan of Lisa See's mysteries, and her sympathies with, and skill in creating characters of both sexes, are apparent in both the mystery plots and the present book.

This plot is beautifully woven, with two women at its center, but there is compassion for both the women and the men in the nineteenth-century Chinese society the author re-creates so vividly. Lisa See obviously LIKES her characters, and she develops some understanding of and compassion for ALL of them. Her natural sensitivity, vast research--including visits and interviews in the remote region she is writing about--make her work fully convincing.

Tender, celebratory, joyous, painful, heart-breaking at times-- this is a memorable, glorious book. After reading it, I found myself thinking more and more about some of the power, motivations, love, violence, and ways of communication in our twenty-first century societies.

I will pass my copy along to a friend or two, but I will say "Be sure to return it."

57 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!, December 23, 2006

By 

Carolyn Rampone "Carolyn D'Amico Rampone" (Plantation, FL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan: A Novel (Paperback)

The lifelong story of Lily and Snow Flower broke my heart on so many levels. I cried for them as little girls enduring the traditions they were born to. I cried some more as their fates unfolded and it became evident it would not be a happy ever after tale. "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" was an unexpected surprise for me, a great story with twists and turns you might not anticipate. It is fast moving , almost from the first page and by mid book, I wasn't able to put it down. I just had to know what happened and couldn't wait for the ending. Teen girls should read "Snow Flower" to better understand how far women have come since the days of foot binding and arranged marriages. This was an excellent story and I highly recommend it.