Forget Sorrow: An Ancestral Tale

by Belle Yang

"A healing portrait drawn in epic ink strokes."-Elle

When Belle Yang was forced to take refuge in her parents’ home after an abusive boyfriend began stalking her, her father entertained her with stories of old China. The history she’d ignored while growing up became a source of comfort and inspiration, and narrowed the gap separating her—an independent, Chinese-American woman—from her Old World Chinese parents.

In Forget Sorrow, Yang makes her debut into the graphic form with the story of her father’s family, reunited under the House of Yang in Manchuria during the Second World War and struggling—both together and individually—to weather poverty, famine, and, later, Communist oppression. The parallels between Belle Yang’s journey of self-discovery and the lives and choices of her grandfather, his brothers, and their father (the Patriarch) speak powerfully of the conflicts between generations—and of possibilities for reconciliation.

Forget Sorrow demonstrates the power of storytelling and remembrance, as Belle—in telling this story—finds the strength to honor both her father and herself.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Memoir, Comics, Nonfiction, China, History, Asia

258 pages, Paperback

First published May 10, 2010

About the author

"My Chinese name is Xuan, or "Forget-All-Sorrow." It is also Chinese for "lily of a day," notes Belle Yang. "If life spans a mere day, why spend it in worry?" Indeed, the author-illustrator of HANNAH IS MY NAME recalls a seemingly worry-free childhood in Taiwan and Japan, where she "doodled and fiddled around with words and discovered they were her life."

Now an author and painter, Belle Yang has developed a remarkable style that draws on her rich cultural background, influenced not only by childhood memories of Taiwan and Japan and her experience of immigrating to the United States at age seven, but also by her studies in Scotland and China. It was Belle Yang's homecoming from China to the U.S. after the Tiananmen Massacre that precipitated a new dedication to her art. "I returned with gratitude in my heart for the freedom of expression given me in America," she says. "I returned convinced that I would firmly grasp this gift with both hands." And since officially becoming an artist "sometime in the early nineties," Belle Yang's work has consistently garnered widespread acclaim for its vividness and authenticity. Notes Amy Tan, author of THE JOY LUCK CLUB, "Belle Yang is an American writer who writes in English and thinks in Chinese. Her writing feels Chinese. . . . It is as though we, the readers of English, can now miraculously read Chinese."


Belle Yang's latest book perfectly captures the essence of this Chinese-American fusion. HANNAH IS MY NAME is an immigrant story especially close to the author's own: "HANNAH IS MY NAME is based on our first years in San Francisco," she says. "I missed my old friends and teacher, but it was not a miserable yearning. It was a great privilege to come to the United States, and we didn't look back." Like the author, Hannah and her family move from Taiwan to San Francisco, where she takes a new name, begins a new school, learns a new language, and starts to adjust to a new way of life. Illuminated by Chinese-influenced paintings in jewel-like colors, Belle Yang's immigration tale represents one of the many facets of the American dream.


Belle Yang has written and illustrated four books and has participated in solo museum shows. She lives in California.

Reviews

[Elizabeth A · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this graphic memoir, Belle Yang interweaves her personal story and trauma with that of her extended family. Escaping an abusive relationship, Yang moves in with her parents, and takes comfort in the stories her father shares about his childhood in Manchuria, the family Patriarch, the extended family, and all their dramas during a period of upheaval in China.

I really liked the juxtaposition of this young Chinese-American's worldview with that of her Chinese parents. I appreciated the exploration of some of China's history through the lens of one family. There is both heart ache and humor, and things that are lost and gained with immigration. I didn't particularly like the blocky black and white illustration style, and it got a little confusing when we meet the extended family in China. The themes covered are compelling, and this is a good introduction to some history I wasn't familiar with.

[Kirk · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the narration far too confusing, especially when Yang's rather cartoony drawing style doesn't do much to distinguish between characters. They're all about the same basic build, but maybe one's hat is different or he has a wave in his hair. Yeah...who is that again? And then periodically she'll interrupt somebody's narration with her own and I had a hard time keeping track which generation was currently speaking.

Suggestions: -family tree at the beginning of the book, complete with little faces
-dramatis personae (also with little faces)
-have a little face next to the narration blocks whenever somebody new starts narrating.

I'm sure she has a great story to tell, but she needs to clean up the narration first. However, I did learn why the caged bird sings, so thanks for that much.

[Ming Wei · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book interesting and very readable, the storyline in this book, in my opinion would have been real-life for thousands of Chinese families during the period that the book is based within. The book blends together various themes, survival, struggling for food, etc. I quite like it, The write gives the characters emotion and individual characteristics, the story line is never dull, it engages with the reader and keeps your concentration. An interesting far-east story. Well worth reading, did not discover any editorial issues, maybe the book cover was a bit plain, but this does not hide the fact, that the book, is a good book.

[Adrienne Blaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This reminds me of Art Spiegelman’s Maus, first because of its descriptions of World War II but also because of its focus on familial dynamics and trauma. The Chinese perspective offered here rounds out my own Western view of events. I missed the memo about this being an ancestral tale at first. I was hoping to learn more about Belle Yang herself, but once I accepted this as an illustration of her father’s recollections I grew to appreciate it. He recounts the stories of multiple generations, so it’s hard to follow at times, but distinct personalities shine through. The sprawling stories are grounded by scenes of the author and her father together. The beauty of Yang’s illustrations style and brushwork makes up for any clunky transitions.

[Vishy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got ‘Forget Sorrow’ by Belle Yang, as a birthday present from one of my dear friends. My friend has introduced me to a lot of beautiful literature and so I couldn’t wait to read Belle Yang’s book. I read it in one sitting. Here is what I think.

What I think

‘Forget Sorrow’ is the memoir of the author Belle Yang and that of her father. Belle Yang starts the book with her own life – on how she was born in Taiwan to parents who had come from mainland China and how they had ended up in America. She also talks about the difference between her perspective of life and that of her parents and the eternal conflict between the value systems of the east and the west and how that led to differences and conflicts at home. She goes away from home to attend college, but comes back home after graduating, as an ex-boyfriend is stalking her. Her father uses his contacts and gets her admitted to a traditional Chinese art course in Beijing, where her teacher is Deng Lin, Deng Xiaoping’s daughter. The year is 1989 and we all know what happened – it is the year of the Tiananmen massacre, and Belle experiences history as it happens. Unfortunately the situation in Beijing becomes too tough for her to manage and she comes back home to live with her parents and whiles away her time. Her dad is very disappointed with her and frequently compares her with people whom they know – he is disappointed that while everyone is moving on in their lives, studying at university and getting advanced degrees, or getting settled in good professions, his own daughter is whiling away her time at home. This time together helps Belle in getting to know her parents better. While having long conversations, her father tells her his own story – about his own parents and grandparents and uncles and aunts and how it came about that a poor family in Manchuria, became rich and how history intervened in the fortunes of the family and made it poor again, and how he was able to escape from his own country and strike it out in a free land. A significant part of the story is narrated by Belle Yang’s father and is about his family.

I liked ‘Forget Sorrow’ very much for the insider’s view it presented on early twentieth-century China. Belle’s grandparents were Manchurians and we see how this fact changes their lives and that of their families for good and for bad at different times in history. My favourite character in the story was Belle’s father’s second uncle, who is a person who loves live to the full, is philosophical, is not ambitious and is able to enjoy life when the family is rich and when it is poor. At various times he tries his hand at selling watermelons and works in a factory as an accountant and people around always like him for his unconventional ways and for his friendly nature. Another of my favourite characters is Belle Yang’s father’s aunt who dies young. The book also gives an interesting depiction of the debates, arguments, subtle politics and the kind acts that happen in a Chinese family of that era, where custom and tradition are important but where people find their way around tradition and indulge in spontaneous acts of kindness.

In some ways Belle Yang’s book reminded me of the graphic novel classics – ‘Persepolis’ by Marjane Sartrapi, because it was also a memoir set during a particular era, and of ‘Maus’ by Art Spiegelman, because as Spiegelman does, Yang also talks to her father and draws out the family story and secrets from him.

If you like reading books on China and if you like graphic novels, you will enjoy this.

[Kristen Northrup · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to enjoy this much more than I did. You never want to speak ill of tragedy-laden true stories, of course. And it's a part of 20th century history that has never received all that much attention in the West, thanks to the distraction of our own horrors.

But I did have difficulty with the art. I was really surprised to learn at the end that Yang is an established artist, so it was a style choice rather than simply a lack of experience. Things were just too tightly packed for me, and not even specific to the given mood. Of course, it didn't help that I had an advance copy that was more error-prone than most. Many speech bubbles only had half of their words and others had temporary notes mixed in with the dialog. The methods of expressing strong emotion and peril were strong; it was more the scenery that got over-detailed and too strongly inked.

The story itself was very well-structured and always engaging. The only quibble there was how blithely the ex-boyfriend was written off at the end.

[Leah Rachel von Essen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent, dense graphic memoir in haunting black and white. When Belle Yang escapes an abusive, violent relationship, she first goes to stay with extended family and go to art school in China—but must leave after the 1989 Tiananmen massacre. Once back in the US, she struggles to get along with her often critical parents. But she finds solace in her father's stories of his childhood in Manchuria, of the family's Patriarch and her father's many uncles, and their dramas and arguments.

It's a vivid illustrated story that gives life to Yang's family and their experience during a period of upheaval in China. It portrays a strict, traditional structure pulled at the edges by more progressive ideas; it shows the transformation and struggle of the family through the occupation by the Japanese and during the rise of Communism. My only complaint is that the ending of Belle's story feels unrealistically neat; but I enjoyed the dense art style and the family historical tale.

[Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read this for my history course, despite that I had an enjoyable time reading it. I found the story of one family’s separation and fall from grace to be extremely disheartening to read. I also learned a bit about Chinese history and culture from this graphic novel. The art style was appealing at first, but it eventually got very confusing as more and more characters were introduced. It was also hard to gauge what was going on in certain depictions because of the messy look. The book can be hard to follow at times, not only because of the art style but also because of how the story is told. It jumps back and forth between timelines constantly. By the end of the book however I felt I had a good idea of what happened. This was a good graphic novel memoir, but I don’t think it was anything incredible.

[Rafael Machado · Rating 3 out of 5]

Belle Yang conta a história de sua família, oriunda da Manchuria, que hoje vive nos Estados Unidos. Ao visitar a história de seus antepassados, Belle vê intrigas internas e a guerra contra os soldados comunistas destruindo as relações. É uma boa leitura, mas a arte fica distante, funcionaria muito bem se fosse um livro. Acho que o tamanho faz com que esperasse um desfecho grandioso, o que não ocorre. É legal, mas só.

[Olavia Kite · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful. Sad. Dense. Chinese history just hits you on the head—events seem to pile up rather than flow in consecutive order, but that's not the author's fault at all. It's just the way it's been. This book reminded me of The Family, by Ba Jin, a novel I read and loved when I was about twelve.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think there may have been things I missed reading this book because of my lack of knowledge about Chinese symbolism and culture but it was a fairly normal parallel narrative structure. Was the graphic memoir the best genre for the story? Maybe? It was fine and I learned some Chinese history.

[Arelis Uribe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Me compré este libro en un viaje a Estados Unidos. Me tincó porque nunca he leído a una ilustradora china y porque en la recomendación decía que es el "Maus de la revolución cultural". La verdad no sé si es para tanto. Y ésa es mi primera crítica. Goodreads también agrupa este libro junto a Persépolis o algunos de Bechdel. Y no sé si tiene esa calidad. Las ilustraciones funcionan, pero no están al nivel de vanguardia de Art Spiegelman, que se tira a la piscina nomás y explica el holocausto con ratones y gatos. Tampoco tiene la belleza de Marjane Satrapi, aprovechando el blanco y negro al máximo para relatar la historia. Los dibujos son dibujos nomás. Cumplen. La historia sí es linda y en eso sí se parece a Persépolis y Maus, porque estas tres obras cuentan un período de la historia de la humanidad (la revolución en Irán, el holocausto) a partir del relato autobiográfico propio o de los padres. Es lindo leer sobre la cultura china. Lo que significa el honor, la tierra, el patriarca, los mayores. Son morales de otro orden, casi opuestas a la vida "occidental". Salvo en lo del patriarcado, eso es igual en todas partes. Una no sabe que en China, por ejemplo, comen primero los adultos y después los niños, porque los mayores tienen privilegios por el hecho de ser mayores. Cosas así. También se aborda el período de Mao Tse Tung. En China, la máquina asesina fue comunista, en nombre del pueblo y del nacionalismo. Que una sea de izquierda no significa que no pueda indignarse por lo que el fascismo ha producido en nombre de ideas tan nobles. Igual que en Chile y en tantos lados, hubo tortura, exilio, trabajos forzados, revanchismo, injusticias disfrazadas de la búsqueda de la justicia. No sé qué chucha pasa con los seres humanos que pueden ser totalitarios agarrándose de cualquier idea, sea comunitaria o individualista. Me da susto, porque pienso ¿qué me separa a mí de alguien que tortura, de alguien que se nubla con una idea y aplasta a quienes no la comparten? Nada, somos la misma raza humana. A veces pienso que ese monstruo duerme dentro de cada persona y me da susto que algún día algo detone que despierte y yo también pueda hacer daño así. Ojalá que no. Me gustó mucho que fuera intercalando la historia de su familia con las conversaciones que tenía con su papá, sobre el presente, los errores que ella cometió como hija, las diferencias entre haber crecido en China y en Estados Unidos. Hay muchos diálogos entre el padre y la hija que me encanta que hayan incorporado. "You need to depend on your own talents, not a man", le dice su papá. "We must understand the past so that we may understand how we became who we are today", le dice el abuelo a un hijo. "The world is a dangerous place, daughter. You need to read "The art of war"... not to learn how to harm others but to protect yourself", le dice su padre y ella, mientras escucha sus historias, piensa: "I love Baba's stories. I want to be able to give voice to people who are forgotten". Y hacia al final, comienza a elaborar sus propias reflexiones, recogiendo la tradición china: "Baba, there's that Chinese saying, "you need to fight with a man to know a man". También me gustó que los protagonistas de la familia no tuvieran nombre siempre, sino que se les identificara como "hermano mayor", "segundo hermano" o "cuarto hermano". Y en el cómic se dirigen así, entre ellos. Lo encontré bonito. Siento que es más universal aún. En fin, aunque no me gustó mucho la estética sí me gustó la historia. No fue una pérdida de tiempo, al contrario, me hizo pensar cosas y también aprendí.

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting graphic memoir in which Belle Yang tells not only a bit of her own story (she's turned to her parents for refuge from a dangerous stalker they've nicknamed "Rotten Egg") but also shares her father's family's history. Her father's ancestors settle in Manchuria and build a prosperous life there, but by the time her father and uncles are young men, their comfortable lives are in jeopardy -- first from the Japanese and then from the Communists. Some of the relatives Yang describes are interesting because their lives are guided by philosophies that I might understand in an innate way (e. g. Taoism), because they so permeate Chinese culture, but that don't influence me as deeply. For example, Second Uncle seems content to let the winds blow him this way and that without struggling; yet he survives. Meanwhile the Patriarch (Yang's father's grandfather) ends his life going from the door of one child to another seeking shelter after the Communists expel him from his land and label him a "Capitalist." Yang's images appear to be painted and they serve her story well. But I almost think that this might be a longer book. There are a lot of siblings to keep track of and their stories are fairly complicated. It seems to me that Yang might devote more time to each one. (I think that perhaps she has shared her father's story in other books.) Still, I know from personal experience that anyone trying to retrieve family stories is sometimes limited both by the capacity and willingness of her source to share information and as well by the desire to tell stories honestly (and not make up things that didn't really happen). I'm grateful that Yang made this book.

[Sharon]

Belle Yang spent years of her life trying to stay safe from a violent ex-boyfriend. She lost friends, she spent a few years studying in China, and she returned home to live with her parents. Her parents protected her, but her father resented how Belle's life had turned out, and even blamed her for the abusive ex-boyfriend.

Forget Sorrow is the story of how Belle and her father grew close again through the stories he told of the generations of their family. The conflicts, the sacrifices, the mistakes and the tragedies begin to soften the two of them toward each other. Reconciliation and intimacy happen quietly through the awareness of shared suffering, and the practice of living out her uncle's last words to her dying grandfather: "Forget Sorrow. Forgive your children. Forgive the world."

Yang's book draws a picture of family love in its complexity, and how slowly old sorrows get left behind. Her honest portrayal of her family avoids simple good-guy/bad-guy reductions and allows the reader into the intricacies of how families love and hate each other.

There is no real resolution to the conflict of the violent stalker, who is a looming faceless presence in the beginning of the book, but fades out by the end. It is a flaw in the story, but that's the way real life works, so it's understandable. all in all, still a very satisfying read.

[cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike many of my friends, I am not a comic book reader. And then there was Allison Bechdel's amazing graphic novel Fun Home, and I discovered that I needed to reconsider my previous stance. And to be honest, I brought this lovely and poetic graphic novel home for my partner who loves comic books. But then I picked it up to browse through before returning to the library and suddenly I was halfway through Belle Yang's beautifully illustrated tale of escaping her abusive boyfriend (named Rotten Egg for the purposes of this book) turned stalker, by returning to China, her family's ancestral home. When she returns to her parent's home in Carmel, CA several years later, she begins unweaving the family history that she has glimpsed; interviewing her father about his wealthy grandfather, the family that he sheltered during WWII and Mao's revolution, their feuds and infighting, and the familial secrets and connections. This gorgeous graphic novel was first a novel, and it was not until Belle Yang had been rejected 14 times by literary agents, according to an interview that I read, that she turned it into a graphic novel. When asked for a summation of the experience in a six word memoir, she ended that interview by saying " Nifty: comic book creator at fifty.". Total LOVE!

[May-Ling · Rating 4 out of 5]

i judged a book by its cover and that's how this one got my attention, but i actually think that's a great way to find graphic novels.

forget sorrow is reminiscent of persepolis, in that it chronicles political upheaval in china. instead of putting us directly in the moment, the plot comes from a girl writing about her extended family in china. she tells the story after listening to hours of stories from her father. it's a beautiful tribute to her family.

it's very old fashioned in terms of asian culture, but i get that from my own family. the best part of the book is the illustration. i would stop often and just look at the ink on the page, considering that some frames were pretty much works of art in themselves.

if you don't know anything about communism and its repercussions in china, forget sorrow does an excellent job of showing how difficult the political transitions were for the people - i've seen a lot of that conveyed well on film and the genre of graphic novel does it justice as well.

[Electra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Je l’ai laissé une semaine et je l’ai repris ce matin. Mais rien à faire. J’ai lu 167 pages et je m’ennuie. Le dessin et la noirceur me lassent. J’ai eu du mal à abandonner au début et puis je me suis demandée pourquoi ? Il n’est clairement pas pour moi. Je le note car j’ai lu plus de la moitié et l’histoire (la Chine) est intéressante mais elle est survolée.

[Aneesa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another fine addition to the somewhat-self-centered-young-adult-gets-some-perspective-by-listening-to-his/her-father's-tale-of-struggle-in-his-homeland-during-wartime-and-journey-to-America-then-writes-a-graphic-memoir-about-it genre.

[Monica St. Dennis · Rating 2 out of 5]

read harder challenge 2018: read a comic written or illustrated by a person of color
popsugar challenge 2018: read a book by an author of a different ethnicity than you

I read that Belle Yang wrote this as prose, first, but had trouble getting it published. I think there's a reason for that.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent graphic memoir.

[Wendy T · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay, but I found the story didn't flow very well.

[MariNaomi]

Worth a read if you're a fan of graphic memoirs and/or Chinese history.

[Jenna · Rating 2 out of 5]

The narration hopped around a bit too much for my taste but it was informative and interesting.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this ancestral tale and it brought a lot of feelings with it! I read it for a 20th Century American Novel course and believe it was an amazing story.

[Amy Wong · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think there's possibly any other book that'd be more heartfelt, relatable and wholesome to me directly. Growing up I've gone through the same struggle and thought of the pressures of filiel piety and understanding of where my immigrant parents are coming from in terms of life views.

Generational differences is an understatement of the huge gap between millenial Asian Americans and their immigrant parents. It takes so much patience and need to communicate and understand our parents and to read such a similar story in English is just moving. The arguments the family went through about land (my mom had the same argument with her brothers except she had an additional problem of sexist traditions), the selfish demands when her father went back home (my mom gets asked for money constantly despite financial troubles ourselves in America), and her father pressuring her for a stable job is glaringly relevant in my own life. I also learned more about the Chinese history and the changes it went through (so painful to read). The most heartbreaking though is the abandonment of her great-grandfather, I just had to pause and bael my eyes out.

In a less bias point of view, I can see how this might be difficult to read for non Asian or even non Chinese readers to follow. However, I'm not sure what she could've done to accommodate that because anything less and it wouldn't have been as on point as it was. It may be that this is for a very niche audience. I saw another review saying a family tree may help to distinguish family members, although I didn't haven't trouble with it, that may be the most helpful update. I do agree that I had trouble flipping to present and past a couple times but I didn't mind it. If anything it was because I was focused on the past story too much I didn't realize it switched back to present.

Overall, just so grateful to have read this book.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forget Sorrow offers a dense chunk of Belle Yang's family history in Republican- and early-Mao-era China. If you can crack through the thick layer of second brother's and fourth sister's, not to mention Belle Yang's unpolished illustrations, you'll find a fascinating world that's rarely encountered in western literature.

In the book, Yang interviews her father about his parents and grandparents and their land-holding dynasty that was wrecked by one bad decision (and further wrecked by Communist thugs). The juxtaposition of Yang's modern views and her ancestor's dramatic filial piety is remarkable to behold. 1940s China feels like a thousand years ago rather than less than 100 years ago. When the youngest brother/son gets a radio I was abruptly reminded that the modern world did somewhat exist at this time. Forget Sorrow is an absorbing look at another world and another culture.

The art is functional at best and lacks the clarity that would help the reader tell the many family members apart. That said, you get used to it as the story flows along smoothly. On the other hand, the occasional mentions of Yang's murderous stalker are a tad whiplash inducing. Especially with the way her mother and father seem to blame Yang for the stalker's actions. Um, what? Maybe unpack that one a bit more or don't include it at all.

[Admiralsmallhat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a bit of a surprise.

Yang does a brilliant job of interweaving her own shame and misery of her homelife with that of the difficulties of her ancestor's past. The artwork is so original and unique, blending traditional art with calligraphy and comic book style... it's so clean and clear and beautifully done.

It is not an easy story to tell, and it has a big cast of characters, to convey all of the drama, the inter-family relationships and the attitudes of everyone in the courtyard complex of her family home was an absolute feat. For a western reader it was challenging to remember that baba's grandfather was the great grandfather of the author.

I loved how bitter, frustrated and cruel the family were. How selfishness and survival were so closely linked.. this wasn't a nostalgic retelling. It was a story of deep frustration in face of the crushing absurdity of the cultural revolution, the comforts of religion, and realities of family.

[Sep · Rating 5 out of 5]

A graphic novel in which Ms. Yang illustrates the history of 20th Century China through her family's history. Told in short anecdotes, it is punctuated with conversations with her parents and often has comments on what happened. (She started living with them because she is being stalked by an abusive ex-boyfriend.)

The locations are her home in the United States and various locations in China. Ms. Yang's pictures of her great uncles and aunts are so individualistic that it was easy to keep all of them straight.

This book would make a wonderful addition to any high school or college history reading list.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a powerful book. Belle Yang tells het father's story of his childhood and young adulthood in China. She gets to know him better as he tells the story.

I had a harder time reading it than with other books of this type. I'm not sure how much of that was the intensity of the story and how much was flaws that made it harder to understand. The artwork is good but...blocky? I got who the characters were at first, but as the book went on, I couldn't always remember who was who, or who did what. It was most confusing towards the end, when her father had left and she told the stories of those who stayed behind. Those were excruciating, like most stories I've read of that era in China.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

The black and white drawings have a bit of a cartoony style, but the illustrator uses very consistent drawings for each person (always a spotted hat on the father, always a certain type of jacket on an uncle, etc.) so it's easy to follow this fairly large family. The only thing that gets muddy is that, sometimes the author is telling her own story, and sometimes she is telling her father's story, and exactly who is speaking isn't always clear in transitional moments.

While there aren't a ton of historical facts, this gives every-day detail to the period. Recommended.