Is It Really a Good Deed? Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan
Written: Oct 27 '09
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great characters, detailed plot, easy to read
Cons: Requires a little attention to detail
The Bottom Line: This is a great book for people who enjoy a knowledgable, in-depth account of culture clashes and flawed human thought.
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| wychic's Full Review: Saving Fish from Drowning |
A tourist group in Burma, convinced they're going to save the world. A mountain tribe that wants better and are convinced that their own TV show will save their people. A man who wants a true love in his life, contrary to a lifelong tendency for casual flings. A person who wishes to reconnect her friend with a long-forgotten past through a simple gift. These people all have one thing in common: they want change, and they're certain that once they have that change life will be better.
Right before her carefully-planned tourist trip into Burma/Myanmar, Bibi Chen dies under mysterious circumstances. At least, it's a mystery to her...she can remember her whole life, but not how she died. Consequently, Bibi's friends end up taking the trip by themselves, they just can't let all of her careful planning go to waste by postponing or cancelling the trip. Each has a different reason for going on the trip -- ranging from a last-ditch effort to keep a relationship together to journalistic spying on the Burmese government - but each person goes in with a feeling of innate superiority to everyone else around them. When a Burmese fisherman explains how he doesn't kill fish, he merely tries to save them from drowning but is always too late, the message behind his story flies right by.
In her customary style, author Amy Tan creates a detailed, multi-layered story that is sure to appeal to many different kinds of readers. My first introduction to Tan was in her acclaimed book The Joy Luck Club, which chronicles the relationships between several traditional Chinese mothers and their American-born daughters. Apparently Tan has written quite a few books on Chinese-American mother/daughter relationships, but this time she has departed almost completely from this topic. Instead, she explores the collision of traditional Chinese and Burmese thought with that of rich US tourists who refuse to see the true significance in the things around them.
Tan includes a wide range of colorful characters in her book, and each carries its own story with the eventual "should have left well enough alone" message. No matter how much the characters sabotage themselves and those around them, they remain convinced that they know best and charge forward with the changes they think need done.
This is only the second book I've read by Amy Tan, and have decided that I definitely need to find more. Many fiction books annoy me quickly because they lack substance, but Tan's wonderful stories about various kinds of culture clashes always have something worth reading. Often, I have found that too many characters in a story can muddle it and make it too dense or too long. Amy Tan has mastered the art of storytelling with many characters, meticulously tying up all of the loose ends and making sure that her readers feel like they really KNOW the characters by time they're done. I especially liked the tone of the older, know-it-all narrator, Bibi Chen, as she looks down on her friends from her ghostly state - and discovers that she has her own version of drowned fish too.
It would be very difficult for me to get tired of this writing style. Tan writes plainly and tells a story that seems predictable, yet manages to throw in twists that readers may hardly recognize until they zoom on by. This is not a style for everyone, but readers who enjoy subtleties, innuendo, and widespread cause-and-effect relationships will probably appreciate it.
Overall, this is an excellent book that I enjoyed every bit as much as The Joy Luck Club, and that may have a little wider appeal amongst audiences who can't relate to Tan's mother/daughter themes. It can serve as a brainless weekend read, or can offer some great food for thought for anyone who wishes to pay attention and really consider what's being said in the story. After reading this book, I think it's safe to say that I'm getting hooked on Amy Tan's writing and will definitely have to find more.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
wychic
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 in Books |
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Member: Rebecca Brown
Location: Sheridan, WY, USA
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