In the month of June I finished five books and only one of them was a graphic novel. I read some kind of intense non-fiction in June and I am glad to follow it up with things much lighter and fluffier... Well, for a little while. The non-fiction on deck is looking a bit tumultuous in ways that only non-fiction can be.
My favorite book completed in June is "Wild Swans," by Jung Chang. It is the story of three generations of women living through times of great change in China. It starts with the grandmother who was a concubine to a warlord, her daughter who was part of the uprising of the communist party, and her granddaughter (and author of the book) who lived through the cultural revolution and the time of Chairman Mao. This book is incredibly tense and heartbreaking at times, but it is an absolutely fascinating story. The cliché goes, "Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it," and I think this is a good example of that. Reincarnations of horrifying political powers do not always come back speaking the same language. I would challenge anyone who thinks that Mr. Trump has some really good ideas to investigate a little into the life of Chairman Mao. Many of his ideas for making China Great! sound awfully familiar and I admit that I had to put this book down and walk away from it at several points as the similarities were simply too apparent.
I recommend this book to anyone who has any interest in history, China, or simply how women have been treated in history. It is an absolutely worthwhile read.
