November 29, 2021
Wang’s profound latest (after Chemistry) portrays two generations of a grieving Asian American family. Joan, a 36-year-old self-possessed physician, works long hours at her Manhattan hospital’s ICU and lives alone in a sparsely decorated apartment despite the insistence of her well-to-do brother, Fang, that she move to Connecticut to be closer to him and his family. But when their father, who has lived in Shanghai with their mother ever since Joan went to college, dies after a stroke, Joan begins to feel unmoored. Their mother then returns to the U.S. after 18 years, only to be stranded in Connecticut due to the pandemic travel bans. Because of language barriers, her old age, and lack of a driver’s license, she depends on her children to get around and to communicate. Wang offers candid explorations of family dynamics (“berating is love, and here I was at thirty-six, still being loved,” Joan reflects after Fang shames her for not going with him and their mother on a fancy Colorado skiing trip), and Joan’s empathy for her ailing patients, as well as her disapproving brother and sister in law, are consistently refreshing. It adds up to a tender and enduring portrayal of the difficulties of forging one’s own path after spending a life between cultures. Agent: Joy Harris, Joy Harris Literary.
June 1, 2022
Joan is a Chinese American doctor who is focused on her work in the ICU of a New York City hospital and has little in the way of a social life. Her brother Fang is a successful hedge fund manager who lives in posh Greenwich, CT, with his wife and three children. When their father dies unexpectedly, Joan requests only 48 hours' leave to attend his funeral in China. This triggers an HR intervention requiring Joan to take a six-week leave from the hospital. An overfriendly neighbor teaches Joan how to fill her down time, but these lessons cause Joan to flee to Greenwich. The close proximity of family precipitates a number of conversations that help Joan clarify what she wants. Wang (PEN/Hemingway--awarded for her debut novel Chemistry, and with a PhD in public health) offers a compelling story and gentle exploration of immigration, success, and lifestyle choices. Narrator Catherine Ho is just the right voice for Joan. She navigates the English and Chinese parts of the story with ease and voices the conflicting opportunities and choices each character faces with compassion and humor. VERDICT Highly recommended.--Joanna M. Burkhardt
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