Peach Blossom Spring was pretty well received by our book group, with us giving it an average score of 7/10. We liked that we learned something about the history of China during WWII (being invaded by the Japanese) and also the civil war that followed between communist and nationalist Chinese. The beginning of the story about Meilin, young widowed bride with her infant son (Renshu) having to flee mainland China over land and sea, sleeping rough and eating scraps and dodging air raids until eventually finding relative peace in Taiwan was heart-wrenching and many of the girls at book group found this was the part of the book that engaged them most. The large middle section follows Renshu after he moves to America as a student and stays in America with his Caucasian bride. Renshu has to tread lightly because secret police follow him and he is worried for his mother back home having to face consequences if he puts a foot wrong. His wife and daughter don’t understand his reticence to engage with Chinese American culture, and his daughter especially (her story is followed in the final part of the book) feels neither one thing or another as she is half Chinese but knows nothing about that side of her heritage. We found lots to discuss about the immigrant experience, and the imagery in the book from the folk tales threaded through the story and the allegorical attempts by Renshu to grow an orchard which do not succeed until he realises that uprooted shoots need to be cared for and nurtured to be able to thrive in a new environment.
Sarah Wray Writer 