The Opposite of Fate: Memories of a Writing Life
by Amy Tan
|
|
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of The Opposite of Fate: Memories of a Writing Life.
discuss this book
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
other reviews (showing 1-20 of 906)
recommends it for:
anyone, but particularly Amy Tan fans
This book was a pleasure to read. I don't know whether it could technically be called a memoir; it's basically a collection of mostly autobiographical essays and musings. Whatever its classification, these essays were well-written (no surprise there), interesting, provocative, and often funny. Amy Tan had just the right degree of self-deprecating humor so that she came across as refreshingly humble but not neurotic -- someone I would probably enjoy being friends with, as opposed to many other...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I am reviewing this book after reading it for the second time, so it should already be obvious that I enjoyed it. Amy Tan, one of my favorite American writers, finally gives her fans an inside look at what inspires and drives her story-telling. All writers are influenced by their own experiences, but none have a wealth of tragedies and settings in their lives to pull from. Tan has lived through the deaths of her older brother and her father, within a year of each other, and many years later, of ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in August, 2007
recommends it for:
nosey, lost, inspiration-seeking individuals like me
Again, did this one as an audiobook........... I truly enjoyed listening to this book. It is narrated by Tan herself, which is a bonus, and her imitation of her mother's Chinese voice and accent in comparison to her own accent-free "American" voice, was so interesting to me. But I digress..........
This book is full of humor as Tan looks at her career and life but it is fully of heart-wrenching moments of truth: whether moments of actual circumstance or moments of emotional realizat...more
This book is full of humor as Tan looks at her career and life but it is fully of heart-wrenching moments of truth: whether moments of actual circumstance or moments of emotional realizat...more
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
Read in November, 2007
recommends it for:
any woman, or man
I learned, that family, no matter how bizarre we think they are, ther is always one up on us, and to learn to know your body, doctors can't tell you how you feel, only you can try to let them know, I had a simular thing(medical) happen to me, and for 3 months in pain, the doctors all said heart, I knew it wasn't, it was abdominal, long story short, 4 1/2' of intestine had wrapped around it's self and was killing it & me in the process. All worked out, I'm well..if you can call it that, I fee...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2006
During the 1980s, I admit I jumped on the Asian-Americans-Who-Hate-Amy-Tan bandwagon.
But after reading her memoir, I hold her less accountable to the Asian American writer standard. Why should she represent? Her job as a writer is to tell a good story with believable characters. Her books reflect her specific experience as a daughter of Chinese immigrants. It's not under her control how the public including book critics, place her books within the American canon. It's not her fault how publ...more
But after reading her memoir, I hold her less accountable to the Asian American writer standard. Why should she represent? Her job as a writer is to tell a good story with believable characters. Her books reflect her specific experience as a daughter of Chinese immigrants. It's not under her control how the public including book critics, place her books within the American canon. It's not her fault how publ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
"My mother believed in God's will for many years. It was if she had turned on a celestial faucet and goodness kept pouring out. She said it was faith that kept all these good things coming our way, only I thought she said 'fate,' because she couldn't pronounce that 'th' sound in 'faith.'
And later, I discovered that maybe it was fate all along, that faith was just an illusion that somehow you're in control. I found out the most *I* could have was hope, and with that I was not denying any p...more
And later, I discovered that maybe it was fate all along, that faith was just an illusion that somehow you're in control. I found out the most *I* could have was hope, and with that I was not denying any p...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Anyone who can relay her feelings about writing with as much clarity, insight, and humor as Amy Tan deserves five stars. I was amazed at how she's able to get at the core of her thoughts and feelings about the process of writing so eloquently. She's amazingly funny, too!
If you like Tan's work, if you're a writer, or if you just enjoy hearing thoughts about the creative process, read this book. I especially enjoyed it as I listened to it on CD, read by Tan herself. She is a delight, someone ...more
If you like Tan's work, if you're a writer, or if you just enjoy hearing thoughts about the creative process, read this book. I especially enjoyed it as I listened to it on CD, read by Tan herself. She is a delight, someone ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I'm in the process of reading this book. It was suggested by Gail Lee when she came to do some training. I got a kick out of her description of waiting at a bookstore to do a reading, and coming across Joy Luck Club as a CliffNotes. She didn't realize she had all these things in her novel and there was a discussion question that asked "what character in Joy Luck Club is Amy Tan most like?" She quickly searched the Cliff Notes looking for an answer because she wanted to know too. Unfort...more
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
Read in March, 2005
I found her writing to be good for a chuckle but rather lackluster. I enjoyed the cast of characters that flitted in and out of her memoir (e.g. other well-known authors) but her narrative voice sounded smug and a little arrogant, which irked me.
At the root, I read this as a 'rah-rah' for Asian-American writers. Still, it's always interesting to read how people interpret their own personal histories, so it was fun as a quasi-voyeuristic experience.
At the root, I read this as a 'rah-rah' for Asian-American writers. Still, it's always interesting to read how people interpret their own personal histories, so it was fun as a quasi-voyeuristic experience.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2008
This book, and Saving Fish From Drowning- the last 2 books I've read by Tan are definitely not her best work (I really HATED Saving Fish....). Some of the essays were interesting, but overall the whole book was kind of a yawn. A few of the essays are written in a way that requires background information the reader is never given, e.g.- her whole rock star tour thingy?..... But I stuck with it, I usually don't finish a book if I really dislike it.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in February, 2008
A varied collection of talks Amy Tan has given and prefaces she's written. Gives insight into her writing and parts of her life, particuarly her family relations. I relate to her stories about her mom and the challenges they faced when her brother and father died. She makes some good comments about the writing community and fan-dom. Would recommend to anyone who likes her books and those interested in becoming writers.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in April, 2008
recommended to Lisa by:
merecommends it for: chinese-american, writers
I really enjoyed this book. It was so different from the books I normally read. Amy Tan has led an interesting life! It was a little slow 3/4 of the way through, but I enjoyed reading about her life and relationship with her mother. Seeking the "American Dream" and the chinese culture of honoring and obeying your parents are so polar opposite. It's understandable that first generation kids grow up very confused.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in February, 2008
recommends it for:
daughters, mothers, Asians, writers, anyone
I had no idea. I had no idea what a great writer she is, what an amazing person she is, how difficult her life has been. Now that I've read this book, I know. And I am inspired.
I highly recommend this book to any daughter, any Asian, any writer, and any person with an open mind/heart who wants to know a little bit more about an intriguing, challenging life.
I highly recommend this book to any daughter, any Asian, any writer, and any person with an open mind/heart who wants to know a little bit more about an intriguing, challenging life.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in June, 2007
This autobiography left me with a craving to read more Amy Tan novels. Interspersed throughout her entertaining and heart-wrenching personal stories are little excerpts from her novels which were appetizers for the real thing. It really shines a different light on an author's works when they talk about their inspirations and experiences behind their novels.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in September, 2007
recommends it for:
anyone who like Joy Luck Club
Amy Tan really lets you see who she is. I felt like I was sitting down with an old friend. Some of the material is redundant because the essays overlap but not enough to overlook this great memoir. It helped me see this amazing author as a real person -- a person I might add who has been married to the same person for about 30 years. That's awesome!
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in May, 2007
I like Amy Tan's first books but I think she has run out of original ideas. This is a collection of her nonfiction essays. It really didn't tell me anything I didn't already know, since the whole thing was about her difficult relationship with her mother and so are her novels. (Mommy issues, much?) I was relieved to get through it, honestly.
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
Read in February, 2008
I liked the book a whole lot in the beginning, but after I got halfway through it I got bored with some of the repetition of theme throughout the book. I thought that too many of the writings were connected to The Joy Luck Club, which is a fantastic book, but Amy Tan has written other moving works that I would like to have read more about.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in September, 2004
I always enjoy reading how other people struggle in their lives. I know, I sound horrible! But then again, it's what made them. So Amy Tan had her share of craziness with her mother, but it's precisely that, that gave her the imagination and creativity in her other work. Not a sad or crazy book, but interesting for an afternoon read.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2005
recommends it for:
fans of biography or Amy Tan
I absolutely love every one of Tan's novels. While this book was not so much a definitive autobiography as a collection of her essays and speeches, I enjoyed it anyway. I kept marking up the pages - there is a wealth of insightful observation about life that makes The Opposite of Fate a worthwile read.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
recommends it for:
everyone
I love Amy Tan's stories about her Mom's 'crazy' superstitions and outrageous cautionary tales about the repercussions of eating unwashed fruit (death!) and kissing (addiction!). Listening to the audio recording made me smile, partly in understanding for that kind of Chinese style of educating kids.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
