Recently, I read Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu, her debut novel published in 2022. I was mesmerized by this generational family saga novel.
The story opens in 1938 when a young wife, Meilin, and her 4 year old son, Renshu, live in luxury in a family compound in China. Her husband and brother-in-law are away fighting with the Chinese army as the Japanese forces begin their march across China. When her husband is killed, her brother-in-law returns home directing his wife and two daughters and Meilin and Renshu to pack what they can as they must flee for their lives. Meilin packs only necessities but also includes an ancient silk scroll that becomes more and more treasured as the family makes their way by train, boat, and finally on their feet. Meilin entertains her tiny son with stories from the scroll. Stories that give them strength to go on. The journey is fraught with problems and loss. Meilin and Renshu eventually set out on their own away from the family. They finally land in Shanghai, and when China becomes a Communist country, they escape to Taiwan. Life is hard for mother and son, but they survive with the help of friends.
Renshu finishes high school and college and is awarded a chance to do his graduate studies in America. He ends up staying there, marrying an American Caucasian girl. They have one child, Lily. Around age 10, Lily begins to question her heritage, asking her father many times about his life in China and Taiwan. He refuses to talk about any of it. Meilin comes for a visit, and Lily and she bond, despite the language barrier. When her grandmother returns to Taiwan, Lily is more determined to learn about her father's childhood and family. The rest of the story focuses on Lily's long quest to learn about her heritage.
There is, of course, much more to this story of three generations covering the years 1938-2000. We see the strength of Meilin, the love Renshu, turned Henry in America, has for his mother. The pull of family as Meilin's brother-in-law shows up in her life once again. The history we see of both the Chinese and Taiwanese people is a large part of the story. With the conflict between the two today, it was enlightening to learn the past history. The silk scroll and Meilin's stories that tell of life and how we meet its tragedies and difficulties are also an excellent part of the book.
Besides a very fine story, the prose itself was beautiful. Other reviewers used descriptive words like: magical, powerful, beautifully rendered, richly described, deeply compassionate, a brilliant multigenerational tale. Reviewers gave the book 4 1/2 to 5 stars, mostly 5. I will also give it 5 stars.
There are books that leave us as soon as we close the cover after reading the final page. Others stay with us, keep popping up in our mind as the days go on. This is what Peach Blossom Spring has done for me.
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