I really enjoyed The Immortal Woman by Su Chang—it’s a beautifully written story about identity, family, and what it means to belong. Lemei’s past as a Red Guard in 1960s Shanghai and her daughter Lin’s journey to find herself in the West are woven together in such a powerful way. The themes of embracing your roots and navigating discrimination really resonated with me, and I loved the authenticity of the dialogue. While the political commentary felt a little heavy at times, the emotional depth and cultural insight made it hard to put down. It’s a moving, thought-provoking read that stayed with me long after I finished.

I finished this book in one sitting - which is a rare thing for me to do! This book is a generational saga spanning the rise of the Communist Party in China in the 60s and 70s, the people’s rebellion in Tiananmen Square and subsequent massacre, the rise of pro-West sentimentality in China, then the second wave of the CCP and anti-Western sentiment. This is a lot of Chinese history to cover, especially at a time when American-Chinese relations struggle to speak without hostilities and prejudice on both sides. However, this book does a good job of balancing the narration of political life with the characterization of these three generations of women.

This story touches on many things such as the need to erase one’s ethnic diversity to fit into America, America’s blatant racism towards the Chinese people, and the struggle of the diaspora who attempt to erase their heritage. This book speaks a lot to the generational trauma and cycle of poverty, abuse, mental illness, isolation, abandonment, and fractured relationships that can occur in these instances. I also found the male characters in this book to be completely repugnant and horrible, the author has taken great pains to show not only the resiliency of women, but also the atrocities of men and the power they wield over women. There are not a lot of objectively “happy” moments in this book and sometimes it becomes overwhelming. But this work is saved by the fact that the quality of writing is rich and powerful and draws you in and captivates you in the story.

My thanks to NetGalley, House of Ansani Press, and the author for an electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an open and honest review! I look forward to publication day and am excited to purchase my own copy!

~~ I received an ARC of The Immortal Woman from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ~~

The Immortal Woman tells the story of 2 Chinese women, a mother and daughter through their experiences of teenage live and different periods of their adulthood in the context of their identity. The story of Lin and Lemei looks at the Communist Revolution of China, Lemei's childhood and adulthood through the struggle sessions and decades of Mao's regime, the transitions between his successors and the realities of her life as an employee for a Shanghai newspaper.

Our other main character is her daughter, Lin, who arrives to the US through a university scholarship and goes through the motions of learning which parts of her identity to keep, what to shed/transform, and determining how to survive in the context of her mothers goals and dreams for her, her own ambitions and the reality of two very distinct cultures battling for her attention.

This isn't a particularly happy tale and there are a number of themes including immigration, political resistance, cultural identity and the struggles of being a woman, a mom, an employee and a citizen.

Chang's story is well-rounded and gives context and life to all of the characters that she introduces.

The Immortal Woman is immensely powerful; I'll start with that. It is so very moving and poignant in its focus on the mother-daughter relationship of the two protagonists as well as its discussion of nationalism, immigration, and cultural assimilation. I felt what was being conveyed in this novel in a guttural and heartfelt manner which is an amazing testament to Chang's gift of storytelling.

I think that as Westerners, we have this image of China as a very authoritarian state due to the actions of the government and current political ideology. Additionally, those who might be a bit more familiar with China's history see the Cultural Revolution as a time of great social upheaval where many innocents lost their lives and families due to nationalistic fervor.

And yes, that's all true but there's more nuance to the relationship between the Chinese government and its people than others may think. This book captures these nuances well as through the perspectives of all of the characters, Chang adequately depicts what it's to live in an environment of extreme nationalism and what it is like to be consumed by the same zeal yourself. She also shows the modern and cutting-edge side of China, juxtaposing it with its rural villages and thus showing the immense multitudes of such a vast country that is very much an emerging global leader yet stuck in tradition. Through her illustration of China, I felt that she rendered a multifaceted representation of the Chinese people.

Chang takes on a lot of the social issues in China such as the oppression enacted by the government on its citizens, damning influence of Eurocentric beauty standards, and culturally ingrained homophobia and classism. She did so with tact and nuance; the struggles that each of her characters faced feel very real and very relevant.

I'm always a sucker for books about the immigrant experience as I find myself pondering what my parents may have gone through in years past. The Immortal Woman, in its discussion of the Chinese immigrant experience in America, contributed to my understanding of this topic. Chang really did a masterclass in character development here as she showed the glamour and falsity of the American dream through the lives of her characters. We see how their experiences as Chinese immigrants in America change over the years spent there and how this affects their perception of China, their motherland. The feeling of being torn between nostalgia for your home and glittering ambition for a brighter future was so touching. The Immortal Woman exemplifies the tribulations of being an immigrant, specifically an immigrant woman and mother, in authentic clarity.

I also loved the mother-daughter relationship here. Lin and Lemei definitely have a very complicated relationship and it was written out in so much detail and crafted in such a way that I felt simultaneously sympathetic and angry at both characters. Reading the scenes in which they interact or think of each other was bittersweet and hit close to home personally. It was sweet to see them reconcile at the end and again, this really does show how trauma, political turmoil, and isolation can affect interpersonal relations.

The romance subplot was not my favorite, but I felt it was necessary to some extent in order to show the futility of the Chinese pursuit of whiteness. It was very much giving Oxford study vibes although I feel like the message could've had a more significant impact if her love interest was a white Canadian/American instead of a first-generation immigrant himself.

I also found Chang's writing style to be a bit clunky. Sometimes sentences would be too short and then too long, switching from brief descriptions to flowery prose all in the span of a paragraph. Some scenes and visualizations needed to be fleshed out a bit more, but overall, my reading of the book wasn't hampered by that and the narrative did flow nicely. The Immortal Woman is a pretty fast-paced book and there are a lot of huge time-skips interspersed between short chapters which are done decently and don't impede the course of the story that much. I would, however, have liked some clarification on what happened near the end of the book as we skip from Dali's death to Lin and Lemei moving back to China and becoming Internet sensations. This was very abrupt as their lives took a complete 180 in the turn of a page and some detail or clarification should've been offered in more depth.

Otherwise, the Immortal Woman is a great book and I would definitely recommend this! Chang did an good job here :)

compelling and impactful, well written, book about the effects and after effects of the maoist times, of a cycle of pain in family, and of the story repeating. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

This novel examines the accumulation of history’s impact on Leimei and her daughter Lin, exploring how major Chinese historical events ripple through generations. It reminded me of Do Not Say We Have Nothing by Madeleine Thien and the mother-daughter dynamics in Amy Tan’s The Bonesetter’s Daughter. Similarly, it weaves personal stories with accounts of major historical Chinese events over the past century, showing how these events shaped the present.

While I enjoyed the book overall, some sections felt a bit dry, particularly the political commentary woven into character dialogue. Additionally, the time and location jumps were occasionally jarring and confusing.

Leimei’s story, and even Wei’s side story, stood out as the most compelling. Their pasts clearly informed their behaviors and choices, creating layered and understandable characters. In contrast, Lin was harder to grasp; her motivations and issues often seemed disconnected from the context of the story, making her feel less developed.

The writing style was a highlight, with natural, engaging dialogue that felt authentic and grounded.

The book also explores themes of otherness and identity, particularly Chinese identity, in a nuanced way. It examines the shift in attitudes around cultural heritage—moving from assimilation as the perceived path to opportunity, to embracing one’s heritage as a point of pride. This evolution is captured thoughtfully, especially in the contrast between Lin and Dali’s experiences at university, where they face discrimination, and Lin’s later life, when cultural heritage becomes more celebrated. The author fleshes out this theme with clever examples throughout.

Overall, this is a well-written and thought-provoking book that skillfully blends history and identity.

Wow, this was quite the read. You can’t help but feel for the characters - the family starts in a difficult position, and attempts to make their lives better somehow seem to make things worse. In the context of real historical events, the way that this story plays out can only be described as horrifying. I’m thankful and privileged to not have experienced any5ing close to what Lemei and Lin dealt with.

This book is compelling, but a bit dense. There is a lot of politics at play, as the story takes place in the context of political events in China’s history. It was difficult at times to get through the story without being overwhelmed by my lack of understanding or background knowledge of these events.

If you get past that initial hurdle, you’ll find that this story is a devastating story about history repeating itself. You’ll see just how toxically one generation’s suffering can bleed into the next. You’ll see daughters losing themselves, even rejecting themselves, for the sake of their family. You’ll painfully follow along with generations of mistakes, wrongdoings, and resentment.

The beginning of the read is a bit confusing. The synopsis led me to believe that the main character is Lin. On the contrary, this story is as much Lemei’s as it is Lin’s. The first 30% of the book is entirely about Lemei’s life before she has Lin. It’s a lot of background to take it, but it’s all necessary to understand just how severely Lemei’s experiences will proceed to torment her daughter.

Overall, this was an impactful story - one that needs to be told. It is a heavy, dark, and emotional read. It’s not for everyone. However, if one of your reading objectives is to live and learn about others’ experiences, this book tells of one that is heart-wrenching and life-altering if you are courageous enough to experience it.

Su Chang was able to weave a generational story that I was hooked from the first page and glad it was so well done. The characters were everything that I was looking for and it worked with sharing a story going on. It was written well and had that overall story that I was looking for.