Introduction

An Instant USA Today Bestseller, a Good Morning America Buzz Pick, and a People Book of the Week!

“Throw open the doors of your heart for the lionhearted girls of Chung’s gripping debut…they are heroines for the ages." —People

A propulsive, extraordinary novel about a mother and her daughters’ harrowing escape to Taiwan as the Communist revolution sweeps through China, by debut author Eve J. Chung, based on her family story

Daughters are the Ang family’s curse.

In 1948, civil war ravages the Chinese countryside, but in rural Shandong, the wealthy, landowning Angs are more concerned with their lack of an heir. Hai is the eldest of four girls and spends her days looking after her sisters. Headstrong Di, who is just a year younger, learns to hide in plain sight, and their mother—abused by the family for failing to birth a boy—finds her own small acts of rebellion in the kitchen. As the Communist army closes in on their town, the rest of the prosperous household flees, leaving behind the girls and their mother because they view them as useless mouths to feed.

Without an Ang male to punish, the land-seizing cadres choose Hai, as the eldest child, to stand trial for her family’s crimes. She barely survives their brutality. Realizing the worst is yet to come, the women plan their escape. Starving and penniless but resourceful, they forge travel permits and embark on a thousand-mile journey to confront the family that abandoned them.

From the countryside to the bustling city of Qingdao, and onward to British Hong Kong and eventually Taiwan, they witness the changing tide of a nation and the plight of multitudes caught in the wake of revolution. But with the loss of their home and the life they’ve known also comes new freedom—to take hold of their fate, to shake free of the bonds of their gender, and to claim their own story.

Told in assured, evocative prose, with impeccably drawn characters, Daughters of Shandong is a hopeful, powerful story about the resilience of women in war; the enduring love between mothers, daughters, and sisters; and the sacrifices made to lift up future generations.

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Discussion Questions

From the publisher:

1. Hai and Di each have dreams for themselves. Do they achieve them? If not, was there anything different that they could have or should have done?

2. Di often calls Hai a coward. What kinds of bravery does each character exhibit? How does each character's bravery (or lack thereof) shape the family's story?

3. Familial relationships are important to all the characters. How do Hai's and Di's relationship with their mom evolve throughout the book? What about Hai and Di's relationship with each other?

4. Is there an antagonist in Daughters of Shandong? If so, who or what do you think it is, and why?

5. If you were either Hai or Di, could you forgive your father? What about your grandmother and grandfather?

6. Hai's mom makes many difficult decisions. Do you think she regrets any of them? Do you think she is happy at the end of her life?

7. Hai says, "Sometimes, success is something that happens over the course of generations, something that is built upon life after life." Why is it important for her to make this observation? Within your own family or community, have you seen examples that reflect this sentiment?

8. In China, the historical favoritism for boy children has led to terrible consequences for girls and to broad social issues. Are there any harmful traditions in or aspects of your own culture that affected you or people who you know?

9. Have you traveled to China or Taiwan or studied their history? If so, what were some interesting experiences or observations that you encountered? Or, if you haven't, what did you find most interesting in this book?

10. What did you think of the ending of the novel? Would you have changed anything about it? If so, what?

11. What are some of the most pressing injustices that continue to affect women and girls today? What do you think we can do to change them?

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