White Ghost Girls

by Alice Greenway
White Ghost Girls  
published January 5th 2006 by Grove Press, Black Cat
binding Paperback
isbn 0802170188   (isbn13: 9780802170187)
pages 176
description Summer 1967. The turmoil of the Maoist revolution is spilling over into Hong Kong and causing unrest as war rages in neighboring Vietnam. White Ghost Girls ...more
date added
02-07-07



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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 227)



Anne
Anne rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
12/19/07

Read in December, 2007
recommends it for: Brit
The writing in White Ghost Girls is exquisite, its language as rich and precise as a prose poem's. And unlike some prose-perfect short novels, this one also satisfies with story. The plot centers around a tragedy suffered by an American family living in Hong Kong during the Vietnam War (the father is a war photographer). Greenway evokes beautifully the dynamic, generous, possessive, manipulative, and hungry loves shared among spouses, parents, children, and especially siblings. The relat...more
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Celeste
Celeste rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
08/28/07

Read in August, 2007
recommends it for: Anne
When I first read about this book, I thought I would love it: Hong Kong, family secrets, thoughtful and secretive teenagers, loss. Right up my alley, right? Then, as I read it, I really wanted to hate it, because Alice Greenway is writing about the things I tend to write about (family secrets, thoughtful and secretive teenagers, loss). And she does it sooo beautifully. Her prose is so taut that it almost hurts. But I couldn't hate it. It's stark and lyrical, yet pulsing with energy and raw...more
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Toni
Toni rated it: 2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars
07/01/08

Read in July, 2008
Interesting premise for the book but a little shallow for me. You really don't have to have good knowledge of the Vietnam war even though the story is written in that time. Two white girls (called white ghost girls in Hong Kong) live with their mother in Hong Kong while their father is a photographer who travels to Vietnam for 6 weeks at a time. The story gives a chronicle of the girls, how their lives are affected by the war, living in a foreign country, only having a part-time father, havin...more
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Christine
Christine rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
12/27/07

Read in December, 2007
Short, grabbing read. I went through this in one sitting. Not a typical coming of age story - American family in Hong Kong during Vietnam War - but same relationship dilemmas between sisters and parents in an intense setting. Vivid descriptions of place and emotion. Some themes: guilt, sibling rivalry, sexuality, war, family relationships. I wanted to hear more voice than the narrator's (younger sister) dominant voice.
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Julie
Julie rated it: 1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars
05/22/08

Read in May, 2008
This is such a stupid book. What a waste of time. I don't know why it's on a lot of book club lists. The author writes n such incomplete sentences and thoughts that create an incomplete story. Nothing really happens in this book. She writes about nothing for half the book and then just throws in a bunch of garbage. What a horrible first novel from this author. I'd be surprised if she wrote anything else decent.
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Christen
Christen rated it: 2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars
08/01/07

Read in July, 2007
recommends it for: hmmm....
Well admittedly I rushed through this one, but there is so much angst that I just couldn't handle it. The brokenness of these two girls was just heartbreaking. Also the author uses way too much description for my taste. Overall a confusing and surreal little story that I am happy to put behind me.
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Julie Failla Earhart
Julie rated it: 1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars
07/25/08

Read in July, 2008
could not get into this no matter how hard i tried...the first page is nothing but questions and it lost me...i read to page 30, three times, but could never focus on the characters or the storyline
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Shirley
Shirley rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
07/15/08

Read in August, 2007
This is a great story about two sisters in Hong Kong during the Vietnam War. Their father is a reporter covering the war so he is often gone. The oldest sister is troubled by his absence and desperately seeks attention leading to a tragic ending.
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Amelie
Amelie rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
07/13/07

Read in July, 2007
Interesting book about two American sisters living in Hong Kong while their father works as a war photographer in Vietnam during the Vietnam War.

Highly descriptive, with well-drawn characters, and a great sense of time and place.
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Laurie
Laurie rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
03/13/08

Read in March, 2008
I generally avoid-coming-of-age stories, but this one is a gem. Here is a deceptively slim novel, packed with complex characters set in the rich, lush setting of Hong Kong during the Vietnam conflict.
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Sundry
Sundry rated it: 1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars
09/06/07

Read in March, 2006
I dunno. I liked the beginning of it, but it felt like it wandered around a lot and I didn’t connect with the characters. Wouldn’t recommend it, though the cover’s nice.
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Axel
Axel rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
09/27/07

Read in July, 2006
A sad story about childhood in a Hong Kong long lost and forgotten. Beautifully written. Readers of this book should also take a look at Martin Booth's 'Gweilo'.
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Eleni
Eleni rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
03/16/08

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in March, 2008
recommended to Eleni by: Courtney Russ
A quick read, highly descriptive with a good sense of time and place. A bit "too" predictably tragic towards the end.
Good for a quick distraction.
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Julia
Julia rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
11/08/07

Read in November, 2007
This was an excellent book about Communist China, Colonialism, and the Vietnam war. The narrator is amazing. I really enjoyed this book.
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Margaret
Margaret rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
04/23/08

Read in April, 2008
recommended to Margaret by: book club choice
this book is beatifuly written. Her characters are well delvoped. Her descriptions of places and things make it easy to visualize.
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Cianne
Cianne rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
02/01/08

Interesting book about life during Vietnam from the view point of an American child in Hong Kong.
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Maura
Maura rated it: 1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars1 of 5 stars
09/11/07

Read in January, 2007
Attempted to get through this but was absolutely tedious.
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Miriam
Miriam rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
05/12/08

Read in May, 2008
Intense story, beautiful prose.
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Pam
Pam marked it as to-read
12/03/07

bookshelves: fiction, to-read
12/03 rec via bookmooch
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Marina
Marina rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
12/06/07

bookshelves: fictional-memoir
 


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book data (includes all editions)

avg rating (all editions): 3.24 (147 ratings)
avg rating (this edition): 3.25 (146 ratings)
number of reviews: 19






other editions

White Ghost Girls (Isis General Fiction)
White Ghost Girls (Paperback)
White Ghost Girls (Paperback)