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Forged From Silver Dollar
Li Feng grew up in Mao's communist China with her mother's motto burning in her ears - success demands two things: unconditional sacrifice and absolute mental focus. Finally breaking free of her mother's overbearing clutches and fleeing to Sydney as an adult, Li struggled to make sense of her own lost childhood by piecing together her family's history.
What she found was a heartbreaking tale of love and loss that echoed across four generations of women - from Silver Dollar, who fought to regain her dignity and change her destiny after being sold into a loveless marriage at the age of 13; to Ming Xiu, who was forced to make a choice no mother should ever have to make following the execution of her husband; to Li's mother Rong, who grew up as an outcast on the periphery of society but never gave up hope of a better life for herself and for her daughters.
Despite economic and political upheaval, these women battled to offer their children a better future through sheer determination in the face of unimaginable adversity. FORGED FROM SILVER DOLLAR is an inspiring true story about modern China, iron will and the strength of a mother's love.
What she found was a heartbreaking tale of love and loss that echoed across four generations of women - from Silver Dollar, who fought to regain her dignity and change her destiny after being sold into a loveless marriage at the age of 13; to Ming Xiu, who was forced to make a choice no mother should ever have to make following the execution of her husband; to Li's mother Rong, who grew up as an outcast on the periphery of society but never gave up hope of a better life for herself and for her daughters.
Despite economic and political upheaval, these women battled to offer their children a better future through sheer determination in the face of unimaginable adversity. FORGED FROM SILVER DOLLAR is an inspiring true story about modern China, iron will and the strength of a mother's love.
340 pages, Paperback
First published April 28, 2015
4 people are currently reading
118 people want to read
About the author
Li Feng
152 books8 followersLi Feng (Chinese: 李峰; pinyin: Lǐ Fēng), or Feng Li, is a professor of Early Chinese History and Archaeology at Columbia University, where he is director of graduate studies for the Department of East Asian Languages and Culture.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 24, 2015
Forged From Silver Dollar is a family memoir by Li Feng that could also be renamed, Who Do You Think You Are? The story focuses on four generations of women in Feng’s family (including the author herself). It is the ultimate, underdog tale that chronicles the deprivation, humiliation, hunger and homelessness that these strong women endured and their later triumphs over adversity.
Feng’s story is an inspiring and epic one. It is set in Mao’s China and it describes his rise and downfall. Feng does an excellent job of providing the historic context and backdrop in which her family lived in as well as weaving in her own personal account and story.
The tale begins with the formidable “Silver Dollar” who was sold into a loveless marriage at age 12. She was subjected to abuse and a difficult life thanks to her mother-in-law but her triumph was that she raised three independent and successful sons, Fu, Shou Shan and Shou. Her second son, Shou Shan was a wealthy landlord who would be later executed by communist forces but he did marry another resilient woman in Ming Xiu. The latter had five children of her own with Shou Shan and was forced with the devastating decision of having to separate and adopt out multiple kids after his death.
Ming Xiu did retain custody of her daughter Rong who suffered from ill-health, poverty and being declared a social outcast. Eventually Rong would channel a lot of optimism and energy into being a tiger mum and expecting the best from her daughter, the book’s author, Li Feng. The latter had to employ unconditional sacrifice and absolute mental focus at her mother’s direction and she did succeed, both in her birthplace of Chengdu, China and her adopted home of Australia.
Forged From Silver Dollar is a dramatic story that features the trials and tribulations of four smart and resilient women who overcame the odds to flourish. The story is heart-breaking but also easy-to-read and informative and the simple yet poetic prose does hook you in. Forged From Silver Dollar is ultimately an exciting and inspiring read about love, loss and inner strength.
Feng’s story is an inspiring and epic one. It is set in Mao’s China and it describes his rise and downfall. Feng does an excellent job of providing the historic context and backdrop in which her family lived in as well as weaving in her own personal account and story.
The tale begins with the formidable “Silver Dollar” who was sold into a loveless marriage at age 12. She was subjected to abuse and a difficult life thanks to her mother-in-law but her triumph was that she raised three independent and successful sons, Fu, Shou Shan and Shou. Her second son, Shou Shan was a wealthy landlord who would be later executed by communist forces but he did marry another resilient woman in Ming Xiu. The latter had five children of her own with Shou Shan and was forced with the devastating decision of having to separate and adopt out multiple kids after his death.
Ming Xiu did retain custody of her daughter Rong who suffered from ill-health, poverty and being declared a social outcast. Eventually Rong would channel a lot of optimism and energy into being a tiger mum and expecting the best from her daughter, the book’s author, Li Feng. The latter had to employ unconditional sacrifice and absolute mental focus at her mother’s direction and she did succeed, both in her birthplace of Chengdu, China and her adopted home of Australia.
Forged From Silver Dollar is a dramatic story that features the trials and tribulations of four smart and resilient women who overcame the odds to flourish. The story is heart-breaking but also easy-to-read and informative and the simple yet poetic prose does hook you in. Forged From Silver Dollar is ultimately an exciting and inspiring read about love, loss and inner strength.
June 6, 2018
Excellent!
I always enjoy reading fiction based on Chinese cultural history. They're often a difficult read. Perhaps, because the culture is so different; perhaps, because they're often translations. But I guess, generally they're more literary than I usually read. I'm heavily into thrillers, crime and Stephen King :)
This book was published in 2015 and it has been on my shelf for quite a while, so I sort of avoided it for a while.
But once I began, it had my attention. The author Li Feng is a Chinese-Australian and therefore the book has been written in english, rather than translated.
A great auto-biographical, historical book, that reads a lot like fiction. Engaging story.
I always enjoy reading fiction based on Chinese cultural history. They're often a difficult read. Perhaps, because the culture is so different; perhaps, because they're often translations. But I guess, generally they're more literary than I usually read. I'm heavily into thrillers, crime and Stephen King :)
This book was published in 2015 and it has been on my shelf for quite a while, so I sort of avoided it for a while.
But once I began, it had my attention. The author Li Feng is a Chinese-Australian and therefore the book has been written in english, rather than translated.
A great auto-biographical, historical book, that reads a lot like fiction. Engaging story.
October 28, 2019
A great story!! Very enlightening about Chinese history. A must read for history lovers!
February 1, 2017
Fantastic family story with a backdrop of a modern history of China. Very enlightening.
June 21, 2015
Very fascinating look at three generations of Chinese women. I found this to be an enthralling read and I learnt a lot about how insidious the slow rise to change of power is. We see what it was like before the Communist rule, we see what it was like under the CP rule and we see what it is like for women today in China.
The three women are all very different characters and each has their strengths and weaknesses that make a whole in Li Feng as she draws from her history to tell her ancestor's stories.
A great read for anybody who loved Amy Tan's 'Wild Swans'
Loved it!
The three women are all very different characters and each has their strengths and weaknesses that make a whole in Li Feng as she draws from her history to tell her ancestor's stories.
A great read for anybody who loved Amy Tan's 'Wild Swans'
Loved it!
October 17, 2016
Author, Li Feng relates the story of the matriarchs in her family beginning with Silver Dollar - sold in to a loveless marriage at age 12 - and ending with Li's mother Rong who grew up as an outcast, the daughter of a landowner. The book covers a fascinating period in Chinese history, from Mao's Cultural Revolution through to 2014
June 30, 2015
There is some interesting information in this book about the lives of four Chinese generations from the 1800s to present day. It is simply written (and therefore easy reading) but does read in many places just like a bunch of random thoughts, making it feel disjointed.
June 24, 2015
This book is a must read. It was informative, horrific, funny and sad all rolled into one. This is a story of 4 generations of a Chinese family. I could not put it down. Well done LI Feng you did yourself and your mother proud.
June 30, 2015
What a great story. It is personal and I feel as though I am with the characters throughout the passage of time. It is heart wrenching at times and the mother-daughter relationship is so much like many others I know. A great read.
July 2, 2015
If you are interested in Chinese history, you will like this book.
January 3, 2016
Such an interesting story, I learnt so much history from it. Now I want an update on her life now !
October 17, 2015
If you like books about Chinese history that centre on women then I think you will like this book.
September 12, 2015
Wonderful family story with pre Cultural revolution and the revolution as a back ground
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews