The Joy Luck Club / The Kitchen God's Wife

by Amy Tan

Two stories depict the lives of Chinese immigrants to the United States and their Chinese American children.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Classics

4 pages, Audio Cassette

First published July 1, 1998

About the author

Amy Tan (Chinese: 譚恩美; pinyin: Tán Ēnměi; born February 19, 1952) is an American writer whose novels include The Joy Luck Club, The Kitchen God’s Wife, The Hundred Secret Senses, The Bonesetter’s Daughter, Saving Fish From Drowing, and The Valley of Amazement. She is the author of two memoirs, The Opposite of Fate and Where the Past Begins. Her two children’s books are The Chinese Siamese Cat and The Moon Lady. She is also the co-screenwriter of the film adaptation of The Joy Luck, the librettist of the opera The Bonesetter’s Daughter, and the creative consultant to the PBS animated series Sagwa the Chinese Chinese Cat.

Tan is an instructor with MasterClass on writing, memory and imagination. She is featured in the American Masters documentary Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir. She was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters and recently received the National Humanities Medal. She serves on the board of American Bird Conservancy.

Her forthcoming book The Backyard Bird Chronicles began as a journal in 2016, when she turned to nature for calm. She also began taking drawing classes with John Muir Laws (The Laws Guide to Nature Journaling and Drawing, and The Laws Guide to Drawing Birds). During the pandemic shutdown, she drew birds only in her backyard, documenting behaviors she found puzzling. Over time she identified 64 species of birds that have visited her backyard in Marin County. By 2022, she had more than nine journals of sketches and notes, which her editor at Knopf suggested she publish. The book, which will be released in April 2024, has already received high praise:

“Much of great writing comes from great interest, and in The Backyard Bird Chronicles, Amy Tan shows us how the world fascinates her, especially the birds. The result is both unexpected and spectacular.”
—Ann Patchett, author of These Precious Days

“What an enchanting and illuminating book! How lucky for us that Amy Tan has turned her genius, her deep empathy and insight, her keen eye for what is telling, to birds. Every page of these chronicles radiates warm curiosity, wonder, and delight.”
—Jennifer Ackerman, The Genius of Birds

“This is one of the most infectious and convincing books about nature I’ve read. For the bird-watcher, the would-be bird-watcher, or for the bird-watching skeptic, this offers great delight and unexpected intrigue. Through Tan’s ecstatic eyes, what could be a dry treatise on ornithological happenings becomes something far more fun and much more profound. It’s really a book about seeing.”
—Dave Eggers, author of Ungrateful Mammals

“Anybody even mildly interested in birds, or thinking about getting interested in birds (which are, after all, the indicator genus for the health of the planet), will want this book perched on their shelf, if only for the gift of Amy Tan’s eye and the example she gives us of how to pay attention. What a treasure.”
—Robert Hass, Pulitzer Prize-Winning author of Summer Snow: New Poems

“Backyard Bird Chronicles is fun reading. It shows how we can become engaged emotionally, literally and artistically with the natural world—to joyfully learn about the most accessible and yet wild animals, the often rare and beautiful birds that choose to come and live near and sometimes with us.”
—Bernd Heinrich, author of Mind of the Raven

“With this book as your guide, embark into the bird world Amy Tan. This is an intimate view, a sort-of love affair with the birds and their behavior, that Amy has come to know over several years. Within the leafy universe of her own backyard, she has quietly beheld, patiently observed, and taken in-depth notations of an extensive array of bird species. In colorful detail, she describes various bird’s behavior, while capturing their beauty in exquisitely rendered illustrations. Species include fearsome predators and watchful prey, long distance migrants and hometown residents. Through her unique insight and gift as an author and

Reviews

[Caroline Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

On page 77 of Kitchen God's Wife there's a description of the contents of Helen's handbag that includes "two short candles, a chinese passport fro 40 years ago, one washcloth, one small motel soap" etc. captures the essence of this brilliant writer's show not tell style. Can't praise tis book enough. Intergenerational conflict, emigrants, secrets, love, exasperation.. just fabulous

[C.E. Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you're able feel the identity as a young chinese girl and an african american man, you know something was done right.

[Svitlana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book, because it has everything the person should be dreaming about and some of the most important factor influencing people’s lives. Hope is one of the most important things people should keep forever in their hearts, because it is a sign for a change which might lead out of the labyrinth, darkness. The four cases of families back in China and the comparison with modernized children showed the case of how cultural diffusion really influences people. The cultural point of views now differ and cause some conflicts, but kids never forget their true identity and suffering experienced by their parents to bring them to America and give them freedom. Kids of the women facing difficult times back in China carried on the burden, by dealing with difficulties and problems in their American life. The difference is that while their mothers back in China carried hope in their hearts to survive, these days their kids are their hope and there is no other way but to find a way out and never let the true hope die.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about Chinese mothers who want to pass on the tradtions of their childhood to their children but, their children are unwilling to change any of their ways. The mothers in this book are seen as over barring and controlling while they only want best for their children. This book also shows how far parents would go to give their children opportunities that they weren't given when they were younger. Even though this book showed me Chinese tradtions and was good at times i didn't like it over all. It was one of those books that are like rollercoasters, you only like it at certain points of the book and other than that it is boring.

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think this book was good. The book was about how Winnie and pearl (the main characters) told each other the truth about their life. As mother and daughter, they were never really closed. There was always distance between the two. Winnie told Pearl about her past and how she grew up while Pearl told Winnie what she was hiding from her this whole time. This book is a very caring book. Both daughter and mother kept secret from each other in order to protect one another. We all go through a little difficulties with our mother or daughters. This book got us think deeply more into the relation with our love ones.

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a long but good book. There was a lot of advanced vocabulary but I got through it and I got into it a lot better then other books. I plan on reading her other books because she really has a good way of writing books.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not a quick read, but I really enjoyed learning about China's history through WWII, and actually prior to that. I really enjoyed reading the character's feelings of living with MS and how people treat her, I felt that it really rang true.

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ms. Tan is by far one of the best writers I've come across. It's rare that you find an author capable of captivating your attention with a single sentence, one that transports you to another world. I loved both these novels and everything else she has written!

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing story, again telling the stories of the ancestors of the main character that helps her understand and come to grips with her heritage and family.

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

More Asian education for me, so lovely and sad and so true about mothers and daughters.

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable novel about a Chinese American family and how they eventually reveal their secrets to one another. Lise read this a while ago and loved it.

[Laura]

fiction,women authors

[Amber Holmes]

Joy luck is on the 100
Kitchen God's Wife is on the PS

[Beth Shields-Szostak]

1st edition

[Teresa]

Liked very much.

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent reads. Tan uses both the American and Chinese cultures throughout her novels and her sense of humor creates a great storyline. I highly recommend both of these novels.

[Suzanne Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love all of Amy Tan's novels!!

[Sabo Oloche · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, women are the grand guildians of secrets. At a point, I became fully persuaded that they could "craft" luck of any end.

[Danor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Amy Tan's writing.

[Annalyn]

very good

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read.

[Jennie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was just too much, too violent, too sad for me....

[Ariane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think I fully grasped these two books as I read them when I was young.