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Nanking
In 1937, the Japanese invaded Nanking, China, and a terrible holocaust began. But amidst the brutality, and terrible suffering, one unexpected heroine emerged. That was Minnie Vautrin, an American teacher and Christian missionary who helped to found China's Ginling Girls College.
There, in that college meant for 300 women, Vautrin risked her life to protect and shelter ten thousand girls from the horrors of the cruel Nanking invasion.
Nanking is a story rich in human drama. Vautrin's friend, Yen Hsu, Chiang Kai-Shek's leading diplomat, was not Vautrin's to love, but his daughters found their way to her during their greatest struggle, and she ensured their survival. Although she never considered herself a heroine, Minnie Vautrin was awarded the Emblem of the Blue Jade by the Chinese government for her sacrifices.
Her legacy of hope, courage, and incredible bravery is sure to inspire the heroine—or hero—in all of us. And thanks to Kevin A. Kent's brilliant novel, it's ours to experience in these pages, as well.
Review by Ellen Tanner Marsh, New York times best selling author;
All too often in the literary world, the horrors of war are made even more grotesque by bad writing about war, from poorly plotted action-adventure tales to cloying melodramas. In contrast, author Kevin A. Kent’s WWII epic, Nanking, is a highly informed, crisply written novel that, though set in a period of intense conflict, does not rely upon the setting alone to drive the tautly paced narrative.
Nanking is the story of the eponymous city in China that was the target of invading Japanese forces in the late 1930s. More than a historic account of a siege, it is the heart wrenching drama of the everyday heroes–mostly foreign–who stayed through the city’s occupation in order to help save its beleaguered residents.
Kent’s hero is diminutive Minnie Vautrin, an idealistic American missionary who chooses to remain in the doomed city to safeguard the students of the all-girls school she administers. Yet, this is no overblown melodrama; Minnie’s journey is tragic, and Kent knows better than to romanticize even the most inconsequential detail. Yes, the reality is stark, but the tone is never maudlin, while Kent’s carefully executed series of flashbacks, along with deliberate and tautly stylized pacing, allow readers to empathize with the characters and the situation—one that, thankfully, falls outside the bounds of common experience.
Nanking is vivid and cinematic, a tale that is evocative of a place and time that, played out on so many ferocious fronts, forever changed the world. Readers will no doubt look forward to future works by this author—although writing a novel as compelling as Nanking would be a feat, indeed.
There, in that college meant for 300 women, Vautrin risked her life to protect and shelter ten thousand girls from the horrors of the cruel Nanking invasion.
Nanking is a story rich in human drama. Vautrin's friend, Yen Hsu, Chiang Kai-Shek's leading diplomat, was not Vautrin's to love, but his daughters found their way to her during their greatest struggle, and she ensured their survival. Although she never considered herself a heroine, Minnie Vautrin was awarded the Emblem of the Blue Jade by the Chinese government for her sacrifices.
Her legacy of hope, courage, and incredible bravery is sure to inspire the heroine—or hero—in all of us. And thanks to Kevin A. Kent's brilliant novel, it's ours to experience in these pages, as well.
Review by Ellen Tanner Marsh, New York times best selling author;
All too often in the literary world, the horrors of war are made even more grotesque by bad writing about war, from poorly plotted action-adventure tales to cloying melodramas. In contrast, author Kevin A. Kent’s WWII epic, Nanking, is a highly informed, crisply written novel that, though set in a period of intense conflict, does not rely upon the setting alone to drive the tautly paced narrative.
Nanking is the story of the eponymous city in China that was the target of invading Japanese forces in the late 1930s. More than a historic account of a siege, it is the heart wrenching drama of the everyday heroes–mostly foreign–who stayed through the city’s occupation in order to help save its beleaguered residents.
Kent’s hero is diminutive Minnie Vautrin, an idealistic American missionary who chooses to remain in the doomed city to safeguard the students of the all-girls school she administers. Yet, this is no overblown melodrama; Minnie’s journey is tragic, and Kent knows better than to romanticize even the most inconsequential detail. Yes, the reality is stark, but the tone is never maudlin, while Kent’s carefully executed series of flashbacks, along with deliberate and tautly stylized pacing, allow readers to empathize with the characters and the situation—one that, thankfully, falls outside the bounds of common experience.
Nanking is vivid and cinematic, a tale that is evocative of a place and time that, played out on so many ferocious fronts, forever changed the world. Readers will no doubt look forward to future works by this author—although writing a novel as compelling as Nanking would be a feat, indeed.
338 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 27, 2010
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