February Flowers
by Fan Wu
Publisher: Picador Asia
ISBN: 9780330447683
We book lovers read a multiplicity of books in our lives, but it is quite rare for us to encounter a book that draws us right into the story and, even after we finish it, keeps us trapped in its world for days; the world the book creates for us is so real and captivating that we can’t find the way out to the reality. No matter what you’re doing -- watching TV, eating dinner, or reading another book -- you find yourself half day-dreaming, wandering about through the vivid images -- sometimes even the smell and sounds -- that the book has left in your mind. February Flowers brought such an unusual experience to me.
February Flowers is the debut novel of Fan Wu, a Chinese woman, written in English. It is easy to categorize it as a typical coming-of-age tale about girls in adolescence, their sexual awakenings and entangled friendship, but this novel has got a lot more to it.
Narrated by Ming in her late twenties as a memoir, the story unfolds slowly yet vividly: Set in the post cultural revolution China of the ‘90s, an innocent 17-year-old college student Ming meets the worldly and alluring 24- year-old Miao Yan. Ming, a “good girl” living in her world of books, music and imagination, immediately becomes captivated by Miao Yan’s wildness and otherness, and the bond between the girls grows until it almost becomes an obsession for Ming. Though it seems these two girls have nothing in common, they are both naive and stubborn inside.
Fan Wu’s simple but beautiful expressions, dulcet rhythms and creative metaphors give this book an unusual originality. Despite that English is only her second language, her writing is naturally poetic and has a magical attraction which makes you emotionally connected to the characters. I fell in love with Miao Yan just as Ming did, when they met for the first time on the rooftop:
“The moonlight shone on her plump face. She seemed to be asleep. Her head was tilted against the wall, her long black hair streaming over her left shoulder and settling on her chest. *snip* Her blouse was near-transparent silk, with palm-sized red flowers set against a black background. When a breeze came, the blouse fluttered on her body and those flowers bobbed up and down like fire on a black sea.”
When Miao Yan decides to leave the university and go back to the small province where she grew up, they meet on the same rooftop again.
“She kissed me on the forehead. The Kiss, my first kiss from someone other than my parents, was tender, like a breeze. ‘Silly girl. You’re such a silly girl. You’ll marry someone you love, who loves you.’”
Miao Yan puts her arm around Ming’s shoulders and pulls her head against hers, then begins to whistle a folk song. It is as if I could see her smile on her lips, hear her whisper and the light but melancholy tune that makes my heart ache.
The ending seems a bit abrupt, but it depicts well the sudden transformation and awakening of a real woman in Ming, who is determined to follow her heart.
And when I close my eyes, in my mind I see the two of them, like red and white flowers with light, soft petals, floating on a dark February sea, together.
Comments on February Flowers by Fan Wu
Oct 06, 2007
by Fan Wu
Publisher: Picador Asia
ISBN: 9780330447683
We book lovers read a multiplicity of books in our lives, but it is quite rare for us to encounter a book that draws us right into the story and, even after we finish it, keeps us trapped in its world for days; the world the book creates for us is so real and captivating that we can’t find the way out to the reality. No matter what you’re doing -- watching TV, eating dinner, or reading another book -- you find yourself half day-dreaming, wandering about through the vivid images -- sometimes even the smell and sounds -- that the book has left in your mind. February Flowers brought such an unusual experience to me.
February Flowers is the debut novel of Fan Wu, a Chinese woman, written in English. It is easy to categorize it as a typical coming-of-age tale about girls in adolescence, their sexual awakenings and entangled friendship, but this novel has got a lot more to it.
Narrated by Ming in her late twenties as a memoir, the story unfolds slowly yet vividly: Set in the post cultural revolution China of the ‘90s, an innocent 17-year-old college student Ming meets the worldly and alluring 24- year-old Miao Yan. Ming, a “good girl” living in her world of books, music and imagination, immediately becomes captivated by Miao Yan’s wildness and otherness, and the bond between the girls grows until it almost becomes an obsession for Ming. Though it seems these two girls have nothing in common, they are both naive and stubborn inside.
Fan Wu’s simple but beautiful expressions, dulcet rhythms and creative metaphors give this book an unusual originality. Despite that English is only her second language, her writing is naturally poetic and has a magical attraction which makes you emotionally connected to the characters. I fell in love with Miao Yan just as Ming did, when they met for the first time on the rooftop:
“The moonlight shone on her plump face. She seemed to be asleep. Her head was tilted against the wall, her long black hair streaming over her left shoulder and settling on her chest. *snip* Her blouse was near-transparent silk, with palm-sized red flowers set against a black background. When a breeze came, the blouse fluttered on her body and those flowers bobbed up and down like fire on a black sea.”
When Miao Yan decides to leave the university and go back to the small province where she grew up, they meet on the same rooftop again.
“She kissed me on the forehead. The Kiss, my first kiss from someone other than my parents, was tender, like a breeze. ‘Silly girl. You’re such a silly girl. You’ll marry someone you love, who loves you.’”
Miao Yan puts her arm around Ming’s shoulders and pulls her head against hers, then begins to whistle a folk song. It is as if I could see her smile on her lips, hear her whisper and the light but melancholy tune that makes my heart ache.
The ending seems a bit abrupt, but it depicts well the sudden transformation and awakening of a real woman in Ming, who is determined to follow her heart.
And when I close my eyes, in my mind I see the two of them, like red and white flowers with light, soft petals, floating on a dark February sea, together.
Order:
http://www.amazon.co.jp/February-Flowers-Fan-Wu/dp/1416549439/ref=sr_1_2/503-6145696-3935947?ie=UTF8&s=english-books&qid=1191596310&sr=8-2
(Reviewed by Yuki September, 10th, 2007)