Thursday, August 14, 2008

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress: A Novel Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress: A Novel by Dai Sijie

rating: 4 of 5 stars

This semi-autobiographical historical novel is set in China in the late 1960s. The book details the experiences of two young men who are sent to the mountains to be 're-educated' during the Cultural Revolution because they belong to bourgeois families. There they learn about life and love as they delight villagers with storytelling inspired by their contraband Western novels.

All in all, a delightful little novella with a surprising ending.

6 comments:

Anna said...

Sounds like a great book. Since you said it's a novella, it must've been a fairly quick read. I think I might check this one out. Thanks!

--Anna (Diary of an Eccentric)

trish said...

Oh, I'm so glad you liked this! I had pulled it out of my TBR pile to put in a yard sale, but then decided against it. I'm glad I kept it...I'll be sure to read it now based on your recommendation. :-)

Tricia said...

Anna: It is 200 quick pages. It was also fun to read during the Olympics.

Trish: You'll know pretty quickly if you'll like it or not. It didn't take me long to get into it. I hope you enjoy it!

Corinne said...

I'm SO pleased you liked it. I'm going to read it in a couple days :)

bethany (dreadlock girl) said...

This is the next one for the nook...I should start it right away!!!! :)

Anonymous said...

I've been wanting to read this for a while. On my list!!!