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184th out of 401 books
—
305 voters
Salt Fish Girl
by
Larissa Lai
"Salt Fish Girl" is the mesmerizing tale of an ageless female character who shifts shape and form through time and place. Told in the beguiling voice of a narrator who is fish, snake, girl, and woman - all of whom must struggle against adversity for survival - the novel is set alternately in nineteenth-century China and in a futuristic Pacific Northwest. At turns whimsical...more
Paperback, 269 pages
Published
September 1st 2002
by Thomas Allen & Son
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553)
Nov 16, 2012
Jain
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Shelves:
2012-reads,
canadian-literature,
fantasy,
fiction,
northamerican,
poc-author,
science-fiction,
lgbt
A blend of mythological fantasy and dystopic science fiction that didn't really work for me. The story alternates between two settings: 19th century China and a future Pacific Northwest. There are enough unexplored science fictional aspects to the China setting that those portions of the book seem less fantastical than they do surreal. Which would be fine--albeit not to my taste--were it not for the "unexplored" bit; the surreality felt more sloppy than deliberate to me. Similarly, a lot of the...more
Larissa Lai’s second novel, Salt Fish Girl, combines history and fantasy in an involving speculative fiction. Without revealing too much about the plot, the perspectives of the two protagonists, the 2040s Miranda and 1800s Nu Wa, are interwoven in an exploration of sexual desire, genetic modification, immigration and family responsibility.
The strength of the novel comes from its richly imagined future scenes. So much so that the speculative future reads as a much more compelling and realized tim...more
The strength of the novel comes from its richly imagined future scenes. So much so that the speculative future reads as a much more compelling and realized tim...more
this book didn't quite work for me but i recognize a valliant effort when i see one. it had the potential to be a great book (The Windup Girl comes to mind) and Larissa Lai just might give us something truly great in the future.
prior to this, i read Ursula LeGuin's The Dispossessed, which has all the makings of a classic (soft) sci fi. philosophy and sociology, and economics and politics ... ideas abound in all these areas. LeGuin holds a mirror to our ideals and morals that provokes great thoug...more
I really enjoyed this--it has Lai's hallmark of mythical realism coupled with some harder-science-fiction aspects that i found intriguing. I also appreciated the political critiques of genetically modified food and corporate power, and found the themes of disability/disease and the body to be thought-provoking.
(10/10) I'm almost not sure how to describe this one, because there's so much craziness crashing together here but somehow it all manages to work, flowing into a chaotic, jubilant, orgiastic whole. At the root of it is a kind of surrealist science fiction where everything makes more emotional than logical sense, but it turns its eye not to mere strangeness but the tortured web of race and gender and sexuality and diaspora and myths whispered quietly in the bellies of ships on that long ocean pas...more
When Fox was a Thousand was a special book present from a friend, and I think I remember liking it. I was excited to land a used copy of this one and plan to give it to that friend (after reading it myself!) Sadly, I'm not sure if I liked it that much. It started with a strange mermaid-like goddess who inserts herself into two stories of a Chinese girl in the early 1900s (with anachronisms) and a Chinese-Canadian girl in a distopian future. There are lots of strange smells, the same love interes...more
On my way to my grandmother's funeral last Wednesday, somewhere between Montreal and Rimouski, I waded through Larissa Lai's Salt Fish Girl. Indeed, reading it reminded me in many ways of the Hass review excerpt in the header of this blog: the waters flowing through the text's (post)apocalypse, coupled with its faintly surreal temporal but recognizable social structures, made the experience of reading it through rather like stepping into a(n) (un)familiar element, teeming with bioengineered life...more
Fantastic. Larrisa Lai's ability to weave in Chinese mythology with a world set in the not so distant future is uncanny and utterly enjoyable. Her writing is beautiful and the future she portrays, one in which humanity truly comes to face with the repercussions of its greedy, destructive, nature-meddling ways, is both fascinating and scary. I always shunned sci-fi because I had preconceived notions about it, judged it as being the less worthy step sibling to "true literature," but Lai's work has...more
I felt attached to this book from the beginning because it is based in and around where I was born and still live, and because it reaches through folklore, history and future imaginings to tell a complex story.
Yet I felt that the novel seemed rushed and scattered, and like certain pieces of the dystopian/apocalyptic future were dangled in front of me without any real, in-depth explanation. In part this allows the imagination to assist in the creation of the world, but it also raises a lot of que...more
Yet I felt that the novel seemed rushed and scattered, and like certain pieces of the dystopian/apocalyptic future were dangled in front of me without any real, in-depth explanation. In part this allows the imagination to assist in the creation of the world, but it also raises a lot of que...more
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Salt Fish Girl by Larissa Lai was originally published in 2002 by Thomas Allen Publishers. The plot of the story follows two characters--Nu Wa in 18th to 19th century China and Miranda in the Canadian Pacific Northwest of the 22nd century--and switches back and forth between their perspectives and locations. The piece merges the genres of speculative fiction, magical realism, and myth in wonderful ways that make the book rewarding to read numerous times. Lai's writing style is particularly movin...more
Some powerful imagery, and toward the end of the book, things start to come together and make sense, and the writing feels stronger. But the very final moments are very rushed, while the beginning drags and spends lots of pages establishing things that have minimal impact later on. Some loose ends remain, as well, and character relationships that seemed to start out with intriguing potential aren't developed. An intriguing idea rich with symbolism, but often to the detriment of characterization...more
1 like · like · see review
i'm super biased cause of the whole dystopia setting. and even more so because it was set in vancouver, which is a stone's throw from my old stomping grounds.
subtle, stark, and poised. doesn't get much better than that. i wish they had explained the disease better. that was a really intriguing part of the story and part of the reason i kept reading.
subtle, stark, and poised. doesn't get much better than that. i wish they had explained the disease better. that was a really intriguing part of the story and part of the reason i kept reading.
I was so looking forward to this book, especially since I'd gone to such effort to try and trace a new copy. What got off to a brilliant start, acquainting myself with the voice and the different ages, soon began to dwindle and lose steam as the plot thickened and worlds/characters collided. While the idea of playing with a voice that travels through the ages and transcends time is so appealing and limitless in possibilities, I found the ending a huge let down. While the metaphor itself stood up...more
I just wish I read this when I was about five years younger, as I know it would have had a tremendous impact upon me. For those just entering into the world of sci-fi, if you enjoyed this book I would recommend Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Please excuse the silly title.
Although I wasn't crazy about the Nu-Wa story lines, I loved the love stories in this book! The lovers are treated with such tenderness, and the attraction is so true. It's really very sweet.
Although I wasn't crazy about the Nu-Wa story lines, I loved the love stories in this book! The lovers are treated with such tenderness, and the attraction is so true. It's really very sweet.
4.5 stars
I was not sure what to expect when I started reading this book. The way Lai represents timelessness and fluidity of knowledge between characters is a feat in and of itself. I found it fascinating how the tempo of the novel seemed to change, speeding up and circling more and more quickly like water circling the drain. Beautiful read.
I was not sure what to expect when I started reading this book. The way Lai represents timelessness and fluidity of knowledge between characters is a feat in and of itself. I found it fascinating how the tempo of the novel seemed to change, speeding up and circling more and more quickly like water circling the drain. Beautiful read.
I read this book about... 9 years ago? (It's 2013 now)
It still haunts me, which says a lot about it. It's so perfect and brilliant and manages to touch on so many different things.
If Margaret Atwood and Amy Tan merged - the resulting fiction would be Larissa Lai.
It still haunts me, which says a lot about it. It's so perfect and brilliant and manages to touch on so many different things.
If Margaret Atwood and Amy Tan merged - the resulting fiction would be Larissa Lai.
hmm. I like this book because there are genetically manipulated beings, the world is going to end soon, and one woman decides to take matters into her own hands. But she's almost an anit-heroine, so you hate her and love her, and want to kick her ass. Fun times.
Unusual, futuristic, unique. Not my usual type of book, but it's stuck with me and I've remembered the title for all these years. I almost went out and bought a durian, just so I could add that element to the picture in my mind.
May 18, 2008
sylas
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to sylas by:
lyndsey
Shelves:
bookish-book-club
There were many things that I really, REALLY liked about this book (see Colin's review), however Lai's writing style left me feeling a bit let down. Her transitions occurred too-rapidly for me and often didn't transition my brain effectively, leaving me - as a result - frequently confused about exactly what had just happened in the story. The story itself? Lovely, brilliant, interesting, lots of potential. I just think I would have enjoyed the book more had it occurred over the span of many more...more
When Fox was a Thousand was a special book present from a friend, and I think I remember liking it. I was excited to land a used copy of this one and plan to give it to that friend (after reading it myself!) Sadly, I'm not sure if I liked it that much. It started with a strange mermaid-like goddess who inserts herself into two stories of a Chinese girl in the early 1900s (with anachronisms) and a Chinese-Canadian girl in a distopian future. There are lots of strange smells, the same love interes...more
When I first read this book, I felt a connection of the authoress to Neal Stephenson, one of my favourite Sci-Fi writers, but upon meeting Lai, I found out that she had actually never read Stephanson's books, which makes this book all the more entriguing.
The book delves into the possible anti-utopic future of Canada while at the same time dipping back into the past and traditions of Lai's Chinese background by weaving a wonderful tapisty of folk inspired story-telling.
Durian fruit will never be...more
The book delves into the possible anti-utopic future of Canada while at the same time dipping back into the past and traditions of Lai's Chinese background by weaving a wonderful tapisty of folk inspired story-telling.
Durian fruit will never be...more
Oct 18, 2011
Janie
added it
Actually, I didn't finish it. I just could not get into it.
Haunting, strange, beautiful. I felt like I was in a dream at every moment.
It was unique and evocative. Overall I enjoyed it but I confess I felt like parts of the story were slipping through my fingers. It's told in such a poetic way, and I wasn't always sure I understood what was going on.
Sep 17, 2007
Stefanie
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Artsy, symbolic types
Shelves:
canadiana
A scary look at a not-so-distant future through the eyes of an ageless female character. Magic, faces, smells and identities swim together through time and can I tell you - there was symbolism EVERYWHERE.
Excellent book! Fascinating image of what the world could become within the frame of Chinese folklore.
I am happy to loan this book out to Twin Cities types since it's hard to get a hold of.
I am happy to loan this book out to Twin Cities types since it's hard to get a hold of.
I still havent tried that fruit.
Jun 17, 2013
Sarah Szymanski
is currently reading it
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“How easily we abandon those who have suffered the same persecutions as we have. How quickly we grow impatient with their inability to transcend the conditions of our lives. ”
—
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“When you own nothing, it’s hard to believe you have anything to lose.”
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