Sunday Salon: Three Chinese-American Novels ( two serious, one rom com)

 

 Book Comments/Reviews

Bad Bad Girl  by Gish Jen, Oct. 25, 2025, Knopf, NetGalley

 This novel, in which the author speaks candidly with her deceased mother,  is roughly based on the life of the author's Shanghainese mother, who had left war torn Shanghai in the late 1930s just before the Communist take over of the city. The story also covers the extended family who had stayed behind in China, how they fared and what they experienced after the Communist takeover and the different stages of that era, including the great land reform and the Cultural Revolution. 

The author's tense relationship with her mother is the major theme. A mother who calls her Bad Bad Girl! whenever the mother is dismayed by the things that her outspoken and curious daughter will say. Far from being a traditionally obedient daughter, who defers to her parents and her traditional Chinese culture, the author asks too many "Why Why Why" questions, and is too opinionated and unorthodox in her views. "No one will marry you" is her mother's constant chant. 

History, culture, immigration, mother-daughter relationships - just some of the topics handled with humor and also with some sadness, nostalgia, and regret. 

What We Left Unsaid by Winnie M. Li, Aug. 19, 2025, Atria, NetGalley

This book is by another Chinese-American writer, about a family in America.  In 2015, three adult children make a cross country road trip to visit their sick mother in California. The mother has asked them to make a detour to see the Grand Canyon on the way. 

The urgent call from their father in California had the three siblings meeting up in Chicago to begin the long drive. The mother's wish is for them to see the Grand Canyon on the way to California, to complete a family trip that was cut short in 1991, when the family abruptly turned around in Arizona before reaching their destination.

This nostalgic trip for the three at the request of their mom raises questions about what had happened in 1991 to end the original family vacation. Along the route, they put together their memories of a remote gas station stop in Arizona in 1991 and why that triggered a decision to end the drive to the Grand Canyon. 

Family relationships, family secrets, and Asian immigrant experiences are all under a microscope in this telling and revealing novel.  Another eye opening and dramatic view of an American family. 

Next on the reading list

Alice Chen's Reality Check by Kara Loo and Jennifer Young, June 3, 2025; Quirk Books, NetGalley

A reality TV contestant fake dates her rival and begins solving a real murder that happens on set. Romantic comedy with a murder mystery twist. 

“Fake dating + reality TV drama + murder mystery = an absolutely addictive read.”—Mia P. Manansala, author of the award-winning Arsenic and Adobo. 

What are you reading, watching, or listening to this week? 

Memes:  The Sunday Post, It's Monday: What Are You Reading, Sunday Salon, and Stacking the Shelves, Mailbox Monday, Book Blogger Hop