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The Education of Jennie Wang: Memoir of a Good Student
An American college professor wrote this memoir, based on over fifty notebooks and diaries she wrote during the Cultural Revolution in China. J’s first memory of student activism ended with the death of a teacher in 1966. Thrown out of school after the first year of junior high, J made a birthday wish to complete her own education “to the highest level attainable.” In this success story, “the Tiger Mother,” “abusive father,” peer competition and peer pressure are hard to find. Instead, the reader is introduced to long lists of books circulated underground, school system and education reform, class status and class identity, women’s liberation and women’s theater, life in the countryside and deaths in the city. All is revisited through a distanced, ironic and objective “Third Eye (I).” Many interesting photos surprise the reader one after another. Teachers, grandmas and divorced parents would love to have the young read this book, or anyone who has a genuine interest in China would enjoy the book. College instructors will find its Reading Guide useful, and the book serious, original, refreshing and thought-provoking to teach across disciplines.
254 pages, Paperback
Published November 16, 2015
About the author
Jennie Wang
9 books183 followersJennie Wang is an educator, independent thinker, Professor of American Literature and a critic. Versed in literatures both East and West, classical and modern, she is the author of several books and numerous academic articles, including two monographs and two transnational memoirs—“The Education of Jennie Wang” (2015) and "License Plate Number One" (2018). After a decade of teaching abroad, she has brought back her transnational heritage to share. A volume of poems, a film script, a trilogy of memoir of immigrant experience, and a collection of critical essays are on her publishing agenda. Film makers and producers are welcome to contact her via email: bilingualacademypress@gmail.com
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September 22, 2026
I read this book over a long weekend, mostly in a coffee shop where I was the only person over thirty, surrounded by undergraduates who were complaining about their essays. That was an accidental but perfect frame for it. I teach literature at a state university, and I have spent the last fifteen years watching students treat education as a transaction, a set of requirements to be gamed, a credential to be collected. Wang's memoir did something I did not expect. It reminded me that learning, real learning, is often an act of defiance. And it made me ashamed of how complacent I have become about the thing I do for a living.
The premise sounds almost unbelievable to an American reader. A girl is thrown out of school after the first year of junior high when the Cultural Revolution begins. She makes a birthday wish to complete her education to the highest level attainable. And then, against every institutional and political force arrayed against her, she does it. She reads underground, she studies in secret, she works the fields and the factories and somehow keeps her mind alive. That is the spine of the book. But what Wang does, and what makes this memoir so much more than a triumph narrative, is refuse to sentimentalize the journey. There are no Tiger Mothers here, no abusive fathers, no villain she must conquer. There is just a system, vast and indifferent, and a person inside it deciding, again and again, that she will not let it decide who she is. That restraint is remarkable. Most memoirs of this kind are built on grievance. This one is built on attention.
The voice is the thing that took me longest to adjust to. Wang writes through what she calls a distanced, ironic, objective Third Eye. She uses the pronoun I in a way that is almost clinical, stepping back from her own suffering, observing it as a specimen. At first I found this cold. I wanted to feel her fear, her hunger, her loneliness. But somewhere around the middle of the book, I understood the strategy. The Third Eye is not detachment. It is survival. She survived by watching herself survive, by narrating her own life as if it were a story she might one day tell. The voice is the product of the same discipline that kept her reading when reading was dangerous. Once I grasped that, the distance stopped feeling like withholding and started feeling like testimony. This is what it costs to keep your mind intact when the world wants to take it. You have to stand outside yourself. You have to become your own witness.
The structure is a mosaic, which the synopsis hints at and the book delivers. Fifty notebooks and diaries, compressed and rearranged. Lists of books circulated underground. Descriptions of teachers and grandmas and divorced parents. Photos that arrive one after another like evidence being submitted to a court. There is no single arc, no clear turning point, no cathartic climax. There are just years, stacked on years, each one a small increment of endurance. I found the reading guide at the back genuinely useful, not because I needed help understanding the book, but because it confirmed what I had suspected: this memoir was built to be taught. It is a book for classrooms, for discussions, for students who are learning to think about how education shapes a life. That is both a strength and a limitation. It means the book has a generosity toward its reader, a desire to be useful. It also means the book occasionally explains itself more than it needs to. Wang is a professor, and at moments the memoir slips into lecture. I caught glimpses of the teacher behind the narrator, arranging the material so that I would draw the right conclusions. I did not need to be guided. I wanted to be trusted.
The central theme that has stayed with me, that I have been thinking about every time I stand in front of my own students, is the distinction between being a good student and being educated. These are not the same thing. Wang was a good student in the conventional sense, and then she was stripped of the institutions that reward that goodness. What she discovered was that the desire to learn does not require permission. The library does not need to be a building. The teacher does not need to be in front of you. You can be educated on your own, in the dark, with borrowed books and a fierce, quiet refusal to accept the limits placed on you. That realization is dangerous, because it exposes how much of our education is actually about compliance. We reward students who follow instructions. We rarely reward students who read what they are not assigned. Wang was never assigned anything after junior high. Everything she learned after that, she chose. That is the education of the title. Not the degrees, not the credentials, not the positions. The choice. And I will admit that it made me look at my own students differently, and not entirely fairly. I found myself wondering which of them would keep learning if I stopped grading them. I am not sure I wanted the answer.
But here is where my resistance surfaced, and it is a real one. The book is so committed to its ironic distance that it sometimes loses the person at the center of it. I finished the memoir knowing what Wang did, what she read, what she endured, how she thought about class and gender and revolution. I finished it less sure that I knew who she was. The Third Eye protects her, and I respect that protection. But protection is not the same as intimacy. There is a passage late in the book, when she describes a death in the city, and for a few pages the distance drops and the prose becomes raw and immediate. It was the most affecting section of the entire memoir, and it made me realize how much the Third Eye had been costing me. I wanted more of that. I wanted the moments when the witness stopped witnessing and just felt. I understand why she could not write the whole book that way. I am not asking her to bleed on the page. But the balance tilts too far toward observation, and the reader is left admiring a life rather than inhabiting one.
My second tension is subtler, and I have been arguing with myself about it. The book is presented as a counter-narrative to the Tiger Mother story, a refusal of the abusive father and the peer competition that dominate so many accounts of Asian education. That refusal is deliberate and, I think, political. Wang wants to show that her education was not imposed on her. It was chosen. That is a meaningful corrective. But in the process, the memoir can feel almost frictionless. The obstacles are external. The system is cruel. The individuals, the teachers, the grandmas, the parents, are gentle and generous. I found myself wondering whether the truth was a little messier. Families under that kind of pressure are rarely so kind. Politics enters the living room. Fear turns people against each other. I do not doubt Wang's account. But I suspect her Third Eye smoothed some of the sharper edges, and I wanted the roughness. The book is honest about history. I am less sure it is honest about the people closest to the narrator. And the people closest to us are where the real damage usually lives.
And yet. And yet I have not stopped thinking about that birthday wish. A girl thrown out of school, standing in the wreckage of her own future, closes her eyes and wishes to complete her education to the highest level attainable. She does not wish to be safe. She does not wish to be rich. She does not wish for revenge. She wishes to learn. And then she spends the next decade making the wish come true, one notebook at a time, one underground book at a time, one stolen hour at a time. That is not a triumph story. It is an act of resistance so quiet that the world did not even notice it happening. The world never notices. That is the point. The most important education of my life did not happen in a classroom. It happened in the margins, in secret, in the space between what I was told to do and what I wanted to understand. Wang reminded me of that. She reminded me that the desire to learn is the one thing no system can confiscate. It can be suppressed. It can be starved. It can be made dangerous. But it cannot be taken, because it belongs to the person who wants it.
This is not a perfect book. The distance keeps the reader at arm's length. The scaffolding of a professor occasionally shows through the memoir. It refuses the messiness of family and the ambiguity of love. But I will not dismiss it. I will not dismiss a book that made me reconsider what I do for a living, that made me wonder which of my students would keep reading if I stopped assigning, that made me want to be a better teacher and a better learner both. For anyone who teaches, read it. For anyone who has ever been kept out of a room they wanted to enter, read it. For anyone who believes that education is about test scores, read it and be embarrassed. Wang was thrown out of school and educated herself anyway. The rest of us have no excuse. The only thing standing between us and the education we want is our own willingness to want it. She wanted it. She got it. That is the whole book. It is enough.
The premise sounds almost unbelievable to an American reader. A girl is thrown out of school after the first year of junior high when the Cultural Revolution begins. She makes a birthday wish to complete her education to the highest level attainable. And then, against every institutional and political force arrayed against her, she does it. She reads underground, she studies in secret, she works the fields and the factories and somehow keeps her mind alive. That is the spine of the book. But what Wang does, and what makes this memoir so much more than a triumph narrative, is refuse to sentimentalize the journey. There are no Tiger Mothers here, no abusive fathers, no villain she must conquer. There is just a system, vast and indifferent, and a person inside it deciding, again and again, that she will not let it decide who she is. That restraint is remarkable. Most memoirs of this kind are built on grievance. This one is built on attention.
The voice is the thing that took me longest to adjust to. Wang writes through what she calls a distanced, ironic, objective Third Eye. She uses the pronoun I in a way that is almost clinical, stepping back from her own suffering, observing it as a specimen. At first I found this cold. I wanted to feel her fear, her hunger, her loneliness. But somewhere around the middle of the book, I understood the strategy. The Third Eye is not detachment. It is survival. She survived by watching herself survive, by narrating her own life as if it were a story she might one day tell. The voice is the product of the same discipline that kept her reading when reading was dangerous. Once I grasped that, the distance stopped feeling like withholding and started feeling like testimony. This is what it costs to keep your mind intact when the world wants to take it. You have to stand outside yourself. You have to become your own witness.
The structure is a mosaic, which the synopsis hints at and the book delivers. Fifty notebooks and diaries, compressed and rearranged. Lists of books circulated underground. Descriptions of teachers and grandmas and divorced parents. Photos that arrive one after another like evidence being submitted to a court. There is no single arc, no clear turning point, no cathartic climax. There are just years, stacked on years, each one a small increment of endurance. I found the reading guide at the back genuinely useful, not because I needed help understanding the book, but because it confirmed what I had suspected: this memoir was built to be taught. It is a book for classrooms, for discussions, for students who are learning to think about how education shapes a life. That is both a strength and a limitation. It means the book has a generosity toward its reader, a desire to be useful. It also means the book occasionally explains itself more than it needs to. Wang is a professor, and at moments the memoir slips into lecture. I caught glimpses of the teacher behind the narrator, arranging the material so that I would draw the right conclusions. I did not need to be guided. I wanted to be trusted.
The central theme that has stayed with me, that I have been thinking about every time I stand in front of my own students, is the distinction between being a good student and being educated. These are not the same thing. Wang was a good student in the conventional sense, and then she was stripped of the institutions that reward that goodness. What she discovered was that the desire to learn does not require permission. The library does not need to be a building. The teacher does not need to be in front of you. You can be educated on your own, in the dark, with borrowed books and a fierce, quiet refusal to accept the limits placed on you. That realization is dangerous, because it exposes how much of our education is actually about compliance. We reward students who follow instructions. We rarely reward students who read what they are not assigned. Wang was never assigned anything after junior high. Everything she learned after that, she chose. That is the education of the title. Not the degrees, not the credentials, not the positions. The choice. And I will admit that it made me look at my own students differently, and not entirely fairly. I found myself wondering which of them would keep learning if I stopped grading them. I am not sure I wanted the answer.
But here is where my resistance surfaced, and it is a real one. The book is so committed to its ironic distance that it sometimes loses the person at the center of it. I finished the memoir knowing what Wang did, what she read, what she endured, how she thought about class and gender and revolution. I finished it less sure that I knew who she was. The Third Eye protects her, and I respect that protection. But protection is not the same as intimacy. There is a passage late in the book, when she describes a death in the city, and for a few pages the distance drops and the prose becomes raw and immediate. It was the most affecting section of the entire memoir, and it made me realize how much the Third Eye had been costing me. I wanted more of that. I wanted the moments when the witness stopped witnessing and just felt. I understand why she could not write the whole book that way. I am not asking her to bleed on the page. But the balance tilts too far toward observation, and the reader is left admiring a life rather than inhabiting one.
My second tension is subtler, and I have been arguing with myself about it. The book is presented as a counter-narrative to the Tiger Mother story, a refusal of the abusive father and the peer competition that dominate so many accounts of Asian education. That refusal is deliberate and, I think, political. Wang wants to show that her education was not imposed on her. It was chosen. That is a meaningful corrective. But in the process, the memoir can feel almost frictionless. The obstacles are external. The system is cruel. The individuals, the teachers, the grandmas, the parents, are gentle and generous. I found myself wondering whether the truth was a little messier. Families under that kind of pressure are rarely so kind. Politics enters the living room. Fear turns people against each other. I do not doubt Wang's account. But I suspect her Third Eye smoothed some of the sharper edges, and I wanted the roughness. The book is honest about history. I am less sure it is honest about the people closest to the narrator. And the people closest to us are where the real damage usually lives.
And yet. And yet I have not stopped thinking about that birthday wish. A girl thrown out of school, standing in the wreckage of her own future, closes her eyes and wishes to complete her education to the highest level attainable. She does not wish to be safe. She does not wish to be rich. She does not wish for revenge. She wishes to learn. And then she spends the next decade making the wish come true, one notebook at a time, one underground book at a time, one stolen hour at a time. That is not a triumph story. It is an act of resistance so quiet that the world did not even notice it happening. The world never notices. That is the point. The most important education of my life did not happen in a classroom. It happened in the margins, in secret, in the space between what I was told to do and what I wanted to understand. Wang reminded me of that. She reminded me that the desire to learn is the one thing no system can confiscate. It can be suppressed. It can be starved. It can be made dangerous. But it cannot be taken, because it belongs to the person who wants it.
This is not a perfect book. The distance keeps the reader at arm's length. The scaffolding of a professor occasionally shows through the memoir. It refuses the messiness of family and the ambiguity of love. But I will not dismiss it. I will not dismiss a book that made me reconsider what I do for a living, that made me wonder which of my students would keep reading if I stopped assigning, that made me want to be a better teacher and a better learner both. For anyone who teaches, read it. For anyone who has ever been kept out of a room they wanted to enter, read it. For anyone who believes that education is about test scores, read it and be embarrassed. Wang was thrown out of school and educated herself anyway. The rest of us have no excuse. The only thing standing between us and the education we want is our own willingness to want it. She wanted it. She got it. That is the whole book. It is enough.
July 27, 2026
Jennie Wang's *The Education of Jennie Wang* is an extraordinary memoir that transported me to a world I knew little about and left me with a profound appreciation for the power of education and the human spirit.
The book is based on over fifty notebooks and diaries the author kept during the Cultural Revolution in China, making it an incredibly authentic and deeply personal account. Wang begins her story with a haunting memory from 1966, when her first experience with student activism ended in the death of a teacher. Thrown out of school after just one year of junior high, she made a birthday wish to complete her own education to the highest level attainable, a promise she would spend years striving to fulfill against overwhelming odds.
What struck me most was how this memoir defies expectations. There is no Tiger Mother, no abusive father, and little of the intense peer competition we often associate with stories of Chinese education. Instead, Wang introduces us to a world of underground book circulation, education reform, shifting class identities, women's liberation, and the stark contrast between life in the countryside and death in the city. Her use of a distanced, ironic, and objective Third Eye perspective allows her to revisit painful memories with remarkable clarity and honesty.
Wang is herself a testament to the power of education. She went on to earn degrees from San Francisco State University, Stanford University, and the State University of New York at Buffalo. She taught Expository Writing at Harvard University and American Literature at the University of Northern Iowa, where she was tenured as Associate Professor. She was also appointed Professor of Comparative Literature at Fudan University in Shanghai and Professor of English at Providence University in Taiwan. Reading her story after knowing her accomplishments made the journey all the more inspiring.
The photos interspersed throughout the book were a wonderful surprise, adding another layer of intimacy to the narrative. I also found the Reading Guide incredibly useful, and I can see why college instructors across disciplines would find this book valuable for teaching.
I am deeply grateful to have read this memoir. It is a serious, original, refreshing, and thought provoking work that I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone with an interest in China, history, or simply the triumph of the human will over adversity.
The book is based on over fifty notebooks and diaries the author kept during the Cultural Revolution in China, making it an incredibly authentic and deeply personal account. Wang begins her story with a haunting memory from 1966, when her first experience with student activism ended in the death of a teacher. Thrown out of school after just one year of junior high, she made a birthday wish to complete her own education to the highest level attainable, a promise she would spend years striving to fulfill against overwhelming odds.
What struck me most was how this memoir defies expectations. There is no Tiger Mother, no abusive father, and little of the intense peer competition we often associate with stories of Chinese education. Instead, Wang introduces us to a world of underground book circulation, education reform, shifting class identities, women's liberation, and the stark contrast between life in the countryside and death in the city. Her use of a distanced, ironic, and objective Third Eye perspective allows her to revisit painful memories with remarkable clarity and honesty.
Wang is herself a testament to the power of education. She went on to earn degrees from San Francisco State University, Stanford University, and the State University of New York at Buffalo. She taught Expository Writing at Harvard University and American Literature at the University of Northern Iowa, where she was tenured as Associate Professor. She was also appointed Professor of Comparative Literature at Fudan University in Shanghai and Professor of English at Providence University in Taiwan. Reading her story after knowing her accomplishments made the journey all the more inspiring.
The photos interspersed throughout the book were a wonderful surprise, adding another layer of intimacy to the narrative. I also found the Reading Guide incredibly useful, and I can see why college instructors across disciplines would find this book valuable for teaching.
I am deeply grateful to have read this memoir. It is a serious, original, refreshing, and thought provoking work that I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone with an interest in China, history, or simply the triumph of the human will over adversity.
March 5, 2021
It all started in 1966 August, when the Cultural revolution happened with the Red guards marching around and doing the "house searching movement." Due to this, schools were ordered to close. It was at this moment that she must make a decision for herself. J wanted nothing but to read and study. So, she self educates herself to whatever resources she can lay her hands on. Books became her precious jewelry.
It's not an easy journey as this Cultural revolution with their Red guards raiding houses, taking almost everything, torturing and humiliating everybody labeling them with some old crazy categories about their background and lifestyle. J's house was raided and her mother got humiliated and a few of her books taken, their furniture, closets and some silk and clothes.
Despite all that, she did not stop her passion. She got a best friend, Klever, who happened to have the same interests as hers. And together, they made themselves study buddies. J also got the opportunity to have a tutor and a guide, Uncle Quixote and Uncle Earnest who she had learned the most. And they build a strong foundation in English.
After many years, all her hard work paid off. She got an offer to teach at the university as an English teacher and eventually study abroad with the help of her cousin. She eventually landed a good job teaching English and literature at the American University. She is blessed for her family and friends' support, her Uncle Earnest, and perhaps for what happened because she pushes herself up beyond limits.
An inspiring story, fairly written in simple terms and vividly presented. China's early transition and cultural norms are clearly depicted from the life of the main character. Another highly recommended book up to date.
It's not an easy journey as this Cultural revolution with their Red guards raiding houses, taking almost everything, torturing and humiliating everybody labeling them with some old crazy categories about their background and lifestyle. J's house was raided and her mother got humiliated and a few of her books taken, their furniture, closets and some silk and clothes.
Despite all that, she did not stop her passion. She got a best friend, Klever, who happened to have the same interests as hers. And together, they made themselves study buddies. J also got the opportunity to have a tutor and a guide, Uncle Quixote and Uncle Earnest who she had learned the most. And they build a strong foundation in English.
After many years, all her hard work paid off. She got an offer to teach at the university as an English teacher and eventually study abroad with the help of her cousin. She eventually landed a good job teaching English and literature at the American University. She is blessed for her family and friends' support, her Uncle Earnest, and perhaps for what happened because she pushes herself up beyond limits.
An inspiring story, fairly written in simple terms and vividly presented. China's early transition and cultural norms are clearly depicted from the life of the main character. Another highly recommended book up to date.
March 22, 2021
A memoir of a young girl who chases her dreams amidst the crisis across their country.
In order to establish Mao's definition of "new world" in building a socialist China, he introduces his revolutionary ideas to the people, particularly to the young generations. His new beliefs, myths, and an alien system of thought and practice are passed down to the next generation.
Mao believes that the bourgeoisie will corrupt the mind and the revolutionary will of the youngsters. And to preserve the revolutionary spirit of the rising generation he proposed the concept of "class struggle during the period of peaceful transformation", in which the youth are enforced to go down to the countryside to live there and work together with the barbarians. Mao insisted that college students, intellectuals, professionals, celebrities as well as cadres, and office workers need to be reeducated by the peasants to conserve their "Red Blood" inside and out.
I know a great number of countries that belittles the work of the farmers but with Mao's revolutionary ideology, he made them realize how hard it is for the farmer to endeavor so the people of their nation would eat something on their plate. Although it was a hard job for the city girls, they learned something along the process.
In our family, our parents used to teach us not to waste our food for every grain of rice is a drop of sweat from a farmer's brow. I hope others will also appreciate their efforts. They are the men and women who work in the searing heat and bitter cold, they are the laborers who rise with the sun to tend their crops. They are the backbone of every country.
This has been a bewildering journey with Jennie Wang. And I wish I could read more of her life stories.
In order to establish Mao's definition of "new world" in building a socialist China, he introduces his revolutionary ideas to the people, particularly to the young generations. His new beliefs, myths, and an alien system of thought and practice are passed down to the next generation.
Mao believes that the bourgeoisie will corrupt the mind and the revolutionary will of the youngsters. And to preserve the revolutionary spirit of the rising generation he proposed the concept of "class struggle during the period of peaceful transformation", in which the youth are enforced to go down to the countryside to live there and work together with the barbarians. Mao insisted that college students, intellectuals, professionals, celebrities as well as cadres, and office workers need to be reeducated by the peasants to conserve their "Red Blood" inside and out.
I know a great number of countries that belittles the work of the farmers but with Mao's revolutionary ideology, he made them realize how hard it is for the farmer to endeavor so the people of their nation would eat something on their plate. Although it was a hard job for the city girls, they learned something along the process.
In our family, our parents used to teach us not to waste our food for every grain of rice is a drop of sweat from a farmer's brow. I hope others will also appreciate their efforts. They are the men and women who work in the searing heat and bitter cold, they are the laborers who rise with the sun to tend their crops. They are the backbone of every country.
This has been a bewildering journey with Jennie Wang. And I wish I could read more of her life stories.
February 5, 2021
The book talks about a common girl from Shanghai that continues to seek education despite the Cultural Revolution happening in 1966 that brought the schools to closure. With the help of her family, close friends, and tutors, she was able to rise above the ground. A young mind seeking knowledge and wisdom; a virtuous woman who thinks like a modernist.
The memoir was written in an organized journal from what the author retrieved from her few notebooks and diaries. It describes J's (the main character) life from an early age in China, her family, friends and every other individual involved has their own story in the book. It depicts a rather difficult time since the Cultural Revolution started. With the schools closed, and public humiliation and tortures of common Chinese people from the Red Guards, students, and the working class almost headed for a breakdown. Traditions and norms with the battle of status quo and social classes are all depicted.
There were many things that the readers can learn from this book. The events were explained clearly where it feels like you were transported there through the time machine and witnessed first-hand the transition of early China.
For people and scholars interested in the history of early China, its culture, and traditions that are passed down from one generation to another, I highly recommend this book for reference. It will open the eyes of the readers to the real events that happened; the lessons left behind and the author's vast knowledge of both classical Chinese literature and the other books written by various authors all across the globe.
The memoir was written in an organized journal from what the author retrieved from her few notebooks and diaries. It describes J's (the main character) life from an early age in China, her family, friends and every other individual involved has their own story in the book. It depicts a rather difficult time since the Cultural Revolution started. With the schools closed, and public humiliation and tortures of common Chinese people from the Red Guards, students, and the working class almost headed for a breakdown. Traditions and norms with the battle of status quo and social classes are all depicted.
There were many things that the readers can learn from this book. The events were explained clearly where it feels like you were transported there through the time machine and witnessed first-hand the transition of early China.
For people and scholars interested in the history of early China, its culture, and traditions that are passed down from one generation to another, I highly recommend this book for reference. It will open the eyes of the readers to the real events that happened; the lessons left behind and the author's vast knowledge of both classical Chinese literature and the other books written by various authors all across the globe.
September 6, 2023
There are cultural stories in J’s memoir, but that's not really what the book is all about. It's about women in wartime. How the students survive without education, which was their only weapon in their time. In history class, we were always told about a war led by men, it’s true, but what we didn’t know is how women fight in the revolution. And this is the untold story of the home front.
The Red Guards came to search J's house for three long days and nights. They took all their valuable things and took her mother out in the public to humiliate her. They criticize their bourgeoisie's lifestyle and display the material objects that were found in their household to justify their search. When the Red Guards asked J to criticize her mother she made it without hesitation. I just can’t believe that she got entailed in those who shamed her mother. But when the Red Guards coerce PoPo (J's Mom Nanny) to admit all the crimes made by the lady and she defending her instead. J was ready to get mortified that day, to go through self-criticism, or to confess in public but because she conformed to the Red Guards, they let her go. Considering her intelligence, the Red Guards asked her to write all of Teacher Wang’s wrongdoings, she even helped them to write big letter posters to disgrace the teacher for they all hated the teacher herself as well as her class and grading system. She made a decision which she can never tell whether it is going to warm her heart or burn down her house. In the end, she regretted it all.
The Red Guards came to search J's house for three long days and nights. They took all their valuable things and took her mother out in the public to humiliate her. They criticize their bourgeoisie's lifestyle and display the material objects that were found in their household to justify their search. When the Red Guards asked J to criticize her mother she made it without hesitation. I just can’t believe that she got entailed in those who shamed her mother. But when the Red Guards coerce PoPo (J's Mom Nanny) to admit all the crimes made by the lady and she defending her instead. J was ready to get mortified that day, to go through self-criticism, or to confess in public but because she conformed to the Red Guards, they let her go. Considering her intelligence, the Red Guards asked her to write all of Teacher Wang’s wrongdoings, she even helped them to write big letter posters to disgrace the teacher for they all hated the teacher herself as well as her class and grading system. She made a decision which she can never tell whether it is going to warm her heart or burn down her house. In the end, she regretted it all.
August 30, 2023
Jennie Wang's memoir of a good student tells a story of self-determinism to reach one's dream, a story of family and friendship, tragedy and history, cultural norms and tradition of early China, and the burning desire for literary pursuits.
The story was set from 1966 onwards from the eruption of the Cultural Revolution that forced the schools for closure and as a result, many students were left uneducated. Some students might want to continue their education but they can't since there were no resources. Hiring private tutors is also costly.
J, on the other hand, was quite lucky to have few resources available and having her Uncle Earnest teaching her throughout the Self-education curriculum. According to him, he had not met a student who is as brilliant as J, and that teaching her would be worth his time. Eventually, J's foundation got solid. She also borrowed textbooks from her cousins and friends and learned Mathematics, Biology, Economics, and Politics to name a few.
She is also educated in Mao's Thoughts, Leninist, and Marxist Theory. Her dedication to learning did not fail her. In the end, she came out successful. An accomplished woman of her own right.
This book also offers a rich historical background of each character involved, her town, and of the government. This is a good reference for both scholarly and inspirational story purposes. Highly recommended and best regards to the author.
The story was set from 1966 onwards from the eruption of the Cultural Revolution that forced the schools for closure and as a result, many students were left uneducated. Some students might want to continue their education but they can't since there were no resources. Hiring private tutors is also costly.
J, on the other hand, was quite lucky to have few resources available and having her Uncle Earnest teaching her throughout the Self-education curriculum. According to him, he had not met a student who is as brilliant as J, and that teaching her would be worth his time. Eventually, J's foundation got solid. She also borrowed textbooks from her cousins and friends and learned Mathematics, Biology, Economics, and Politics to name a few.
She is also educated in Mao's Thoughts, Leninist, and Marxist Theory. Her dedication to learning did not fail her. In the end, she came out successful. An accomplished woman of her own right.
This book also offers a rich historical background of each character involved, her town, and of the government. This is a good reference for both scholarly and inspirational story purposes. Highly recommended and best regards to the author.
March 4, 2021
While most fishes go left, she goes right. In terms of passion for learning, reading books, and self-improvement, no one or nothing can stop her. On 1966 August 18, a nightmare happened. The Cultural Revolution took place, schools were ordered to be closed. Red Guards marching and doing "house searching movement." It started in Beijing then moved to J's hometown, Shanghai. Red Guards is a band of men, something like a military, raiding people's houses, taking valuables, criticizing, and doing public humiliation and tortures. Because of shame, many people committed suicide thereafter.
J's passion for learning is very evident since she was young. Her love for books and passion for reading literary works. At a young age, she had already read so many books and shows familiarity with classical Chinese literature. She had also read foreign authors like Austen, Bronte, Hemingway, Hardy, and many more. Her list of books read is quite long. I am only familiar with some authors, but not all.
I like J's character. She stood for what she believed in and will not be easy to get influenced by numerous nonsense in society. She is unafraid to challenge the long-established norms and her family's traditional thinking.
It is beautifully written. Inspiring and organized. Highly recommended and more power to this book!
J's passion for learning is very evident since she was young. Her love for books and passion for reading literary works. At a young age, she had already read so many books and shows familiarity with classical Chinese literature. She had also read foreign authors like Austen, Bronte, Hemingway, Hardy, and many more. Her list of books read is quite long. I am only familiar with some authors, but not all.
I like J's character. She stood for what she believed in and will not be easy to get influenced by numerous nonsense in society. She is unafraid to challenge the long-established norms and her family's traditional thinking.
It is beautifully written. Inspiring and organized. Highly recommended and more power to this book!
August 30, 2023
The story of J gave me a wider perspective of having a strong passion for learning and working for it. It's not just something very superficial work-his-way-up success story. It's not. Every story and the character associated with it has its own merits in J's life - describing them vividly and even provides pictures for reference. She knows more of her roots.
Despite what had happened in 1966 when the Cultural Revolution broke out, causing schools to stop operating she did not flinch a muscle to stop her education. One of the notable statements in the story was her wish on her birthday in 1967, "I will not let the mistake of government policy stop my education! If school will never open, I will have to complete my own education one way or another, sooner or later, to the highest level attainable. No one shall stop me!" Reading this, I can sense the voice of someone who is going to have a brighter future waiting for her.
Every page, every story, and every character is worth reading. I love how the story was presented. Reading it, you can really visualize her life and perhaps make a family tree. She embodied traits of a European woman though she's from China. A memoir worth reading. Highly recommended especially for college students who may have lost their way to finishing their degrees.
Despite what had happened in 1966 when the Cultural Revolution broke out, causing schools to stop operating she did not flinch a muscle to stop her education. One of the notable statements in the story was her wish on her birthday in 1967, "I will not let the mistake of government policy stop my education! If school will never open, I will have to complete my own education one way or another, sooner or later, to the highest level attainable. No one shall stop me!" Reading this, I can sense the voice of someone who is going to have a brighter future waiting for her.
Every page, every story, and every character is worth reading. I love how the story was presented. Reading it, you can really visualize her life and perhaps make a family tree. She embodied traits of a European woman though she's from China. A memoir worth reading. Highly recommended especially for college students who may have lost their way to finishing their degrees.
August 30, 2023
A well-written story of someone as being a good student. It's a matter of perseverance. Learning is not about having many resources yet doing nothing, but it's a matter of finding them and being creative. J was one of the many unlucky students who lived to experience the great Cultural Revolution and the cruelty of the Red guards.
Schools were ordered closed for three years. So she does a self-study with the little resources she'd find or borrowed from friends and relatives.
Many students joined the activism, but she did not dare after having an indirect involvement in one of her teacher's suicide after she wrote a poster on the Red guard's order that causes the teacher to even more depressed and humiliated. Red guards had been marching and raiding houses around, torturing and humiliating people even teachers which were considered to be a very respectable profession.
The story offers a rich historical background on what it feels like living in the years the 1960s onwards in early China. Men and women had very distinctive roles in the family, arranged marriage for social class status, and the society imposes strong patriarchal control.
Vivid historical background and an inspirational life story - a great combo. Top-rated and highly recommended to all sorts of people. Guaranteed that you will discover more things when you read this book.
Schools were ordered closed for three years. So she does a self-study with the little resources she'd find or borrowed from friends and relatives.
Many students joined the activism, but she did not dare after having an indirect involvement in one of her teacher's suicide after she wrote a poster on the Red guard's order that causes the teacher to even more depressed and humiliated. Red guards had been marching and raiding houses around, torturing and humiliating people even teachers which were considered to be a very respectable profession.
The story offers a rich historical background on what it feels like living in the years the 1960s onwards in early China. Men and women had very distinctive roles in the family, arranged marriage for social class status, and the society imposes strong patriarchal control.
Vivid historical background and an inspirational life story - a great combo. Top-rated and highly recommended to all sorts of people. Guaranteed that you will discover more things when you read this book.
September 6, 2023
This book is all about Jennie Wang, a fierce girl who continues to pursue her education notwithstanding their situation back then. She encountered a dilemma that made a hearth in her heart and a storm brewing in her soul. At a very young age, she was captivated in literature. She always shows intrigue in reading books to gain knowledge and understanding. Not until Mao Zedong inaugurated the “The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution”, this decade-long period of political and social chaos caused the closure of schools in her time. During this revolution, Mao honors the Red Guards of the position of revolutionary force. He urges them to challenge the status quo, education system, social values, and hierarchy power of the people which ensues the Red Guards of raiding each and everyone’s house, taking all the valuable things while beating and humiliating the family members. This bewildering complexity and almost unfathomable brutality don’t make sense of everything that occurred during the period.
I absolutely loved Jennie Wang’s autobiography. Even after reading this, it was hard for me to congregate my emotions into one because of its beautiful and vivid story. I felt like I was with J through all of her terrible experiences and I just wanted to shelter her and everyone else from it all.
I absolutely loved Jennie Wang’s autobiography. Even after reading this, it was hard for me to congregate my emotions into one because of its beautiful and vivid story. I felt like I was with J through all of her terrible experiences and I just wanted to shelter her and everyone else from it all.
March 4, 2021
For J, to live uneducated is a suicide. Knowledge is power, as she said. Although the school had closed because of the great Cultural Revolution that brought radical changes in the country, she never loses hope and even worked harder and dreamed more.
One of the notable things I learned after reading this is her PoPo's admonition that serves as a mantra that made her an accomplished woman in the literary and English world. This was during the Red Guards' "house searching movement." PoPo's words were, "People can take away what you possess in the house, but they cannot take away what you possess in your mind. They cannot take away what you learned and stored in your brain. Yes, keep reading those books." This is a pearl of powerful wisdom imparted by PoPo into J's mind.
I like how it is written, every character is connected, has their own story, has their past, and how they are doing in their lives. I never personally came across reading a memoir that is both inspiring and very detailed as well. It also has a touch of brief history in early China's transition.
Highly recommended for students who think that it's the end of their dream. Read this memoir of a good student and let's all get inspired.
One of the notable things I learned after reading this is her PoPo's admonition that serves as a mantra that made her an accomplished woman in the literary and English world. This was during the Red Guards' "house searching movement." PoPo's words were, "People can take away what you possess in the house, but they cannot take away what you possess in your mind. They cannot take away what you learned and stored in your brain. Yes, keep reading those books." This is a pearl of powerful wisdom imparted by PoPo into J's mind.
I like how it is written, every character is connected, has their own story, has their past, and how they are doing in their lives. I never personally came across reading a memoir that is both inspiring and very detailed as well. It also has a touch of brief history in early China's transition.
Highly recommended for students who think that it's the end of their dream. Read this memoir of a good student and let's all get inspired.
March 6, 2021
A highly inspiring and imaginative journey of a young woman who ventured her way through the path of being a good student despite how rocky the roads have been, she never loses hope and instead perseveres more to bring out the best in her.
Well-written and documented portraying the life of the people after the great Cultural revolution in 1966, family and the societal issues with their cultural norms some of which I think is funny.
Whenever someone dressed in fancy clothes, people would immediately label them a bourgeois. I like the peasant's sense of discipline and responsibility in men and simplicity in women. Chinese cultures and norms are heavily depicted.
I like PoPo's wisdom which she imparted on J's life to become what she is right now. Her Uncle Earnest was her proudest teacher. And her relationship with her friends: Klever, Bellring, Pinnacle, Olympia, and Currie - just like J, they also aspire to be educated women who worked in their own way to have a good life.
There were many lessons which I think we most needed in our lives growing up and following our passions. And looking back, we'll notice how things change and how they shaped us into what we are in the present. A must-read book.
Well-written and documented portraying the life of the people after the great Cultural revolution in 1966, family and the societal issues with their cultural norms some of which I think is funny.
Whenever someone dressed in fancy clothes, people would immediately label them a bourgeois. I like the peasant's sense of discipline and responsibility in men and simplicity in women. Chinese cultures and norms are heavily depicted.
I like PoPo's wisdom which she imparted on J's life to become what she is right now. Her Uncle Earnest was her proudest teacher. And her relationship with her friends: Klever, Bellring, Pinnacle, Olympia, and Currie - just like J, they also aspire to be educated women who worked in their own way to have a good life.
There were many lessons which I think we most needed in our lives growing up and following our passions. And looking back, we'll notice how things change and how they shaped us into what we are in the present. A must-read book.
March 6, 2021
A work of real-life story made so vivid and documented. It follows our main character J in self-educating herself. Her character proved to be an epitome of a good student. To her, learning is very important.
The country's current economic and political state and its educational curriculum changed after the great Cultural revolution in 1966. Exploitation, starvation, and poverty rose its numbers. The country was in a state of shock with its people tortured and humiliated, taking their things while some were forced to live away from their homes.
The worst thing is, schools were ordered to close and did not continue operating for three years. Although they graduated on time, they graduated without enough education. This is where J's student life started to get serious. With her own efforts through self-education and her Uncle Earnest's help, she made it to teach in the University in Jiatong, had a chance to study abroad with the help of her cousins, and eventually landed a good job to become a College professor for English major and literature.
An extraordinary real-life story. Very interesting. J's life defines all the odds for her dreams to come true. And thanks to the people who have never abandoned her. It's a good one. Highly recommended!
The country's current economic and political state and its educational curriculum changed after the great Cultural revolution in 1966. Exploitation, starvation, and poverty rose its numbers. The country was in a state of shock with its people tortured and humiliated, taking their things while some were forced to live away from their homes.
The worst thing is, schools were ordered to close and did not continue operating for three years. Although they graduated on time, they graduated without enough education. This is where J's student life started to get serious. With her own efforts through self-education and her Uncle Earnest's help, she made it to teach in the University in Jiatong, had a chance to study abroad with the help of her cousins, and eventually landed a good job to become a College professor for English major and literature.
An extraordinary real-life story. Very interesting. J's life defines all the odds for her dreams to come true. And thanks to the people who have never abandoned her. It's a good one. Highly recommended!
March 7, 2021
In this memoir, we can learn what’s more to life in fighting for an almost impossible dream, a deep passion for learning, and a very rational mind who at a young age were educated in Marxism, Leninism Theory, and Mao’s Thoughts. What interested her the most is her passion for reading literary and English books.
The great Cultural revolution deeply played a part in her development as a good student. With the learning institutions closed, she then began to formulate a plan on how she would be able to continue her education.
Eventually, J got right to it, self-education under the supervision of her Uncle Earnest who had helped her build a solid foundation in the English language. Years later, as the government saw a huge opportunity abroad, they began their “Study Abroad” special program. Now J’s job is to teach them English conversation, Western culture, how to take a test of TOEFL, a little grammar, and everyday writing; thus preparing them for research and study abroad.
After that, J had to leave the country to study in America with the help of her cousins and eventually landed a good job leaving the bitter memory and experiences from yesterday. A job well done by the author for sharing her education life-story.
The great Cultural revolution deeply played a part in her development as a good student. With the learning institutions closed, she then began to formulate a plan on how she would be able to continue her education.
Eventually, J got right to it, self-education under the supervision of her Uncle Earnest who had helped her build a solid foundation in the English language. Years later, as the government saw a huge opportunity abroad, they began their “Study Abroad” special program. Now J’s job is to teach them English conversation, Western culture, how to take a test of TOEFL, a little grammar, and everyday writing; thus preparing them for research and study abroad.
After that, J had to leave the country to study in America with the help of her cousins and eventually landed a good job leaving the bitter memory and experiences from yesterday. A job well done by the author for sharing her education life-story.
August 30, 2023
Such an inspiring story of being a good student, a passion for learning, and being completely strong in a situation where everything just seemed to be going wrong. A simple girl living in the town of Shanghai will tell us that it's not the end for us, instead, we should aspire more to be the person we always wanted to be.
Her character defies all the people and the cultural norms she grows. During her self-education, as the school had been closed after the Cultural Revolution, her mother told her that she needs to work and that this schooling will do no future for her. She needs to earn a living. So she did, but she did not stop looking for ways to learn. For her, learning is everything; self-improvement and awareness of the errors of the government is something she cannot just ignore.
She's outspoken, independent at a young age, a good daughter, and a great friend. She has a strong intuition of knowing what's good for her and wouldn't just give up despite everything.
This memoir is very detailed, offers a good background in every character involved with pictures for reference. It's worth reading this book. Might as well write my memoir soon. Highly recommended to everyone!
Her character defies all the people and the cultural norms she grows. During her self-education, as the school had been closed after the Cultural Revolution, her mother told her that she needs to work and that this schooling will do no future for her. She needs to earn a living. So she did, but she did not stop looking for ways to learn. For her, learning is everything; self-improvement and awareness of the errors of the government is something she cannot just ignore.
She's outspoken, independent at a young age, a good daughter, and a great friend. She has a strong intuition of knowing what's good for her and wouldn't just give up despite everything.
This memoir is very detailed, offers a good background in every character involved with pictures for reference. It's worth reading this book. Might as well write my memoir soon. Highly recommended to everyone!
August 30, 2023
A work of real-life story made so vivid and documented. It follows our main character J in self-educating herself. Her character proved to be an epitome of a good student. To her, learning is very important.
The country's current economic and political state and its educational curriculum changed after the great Cultural revolution in 1966. Exploitation, starvation, and poverty rose its numbers. The country was in a state of shock with its people tortured and humiliated, taking their things while some were forced to live away from their homes.
The worst thing is, schools were ordered to close and did not continue operating for three years. Although they graduated on time, they graduated without enough education. This is where J's student life started to get serious. With her own efforts through self-education and her Uncle Earnest's help, she made it to teach in the University in Jiatong, had a chance to study abroad with the help of her cousins, and eventually landed a good job to become a College professor for English major and literature.
An extraordinary real-life story. Very interesting. J's life defines all the odds for her dreams to come true. And thanks to the people who have never abandoned her. It's a good one. Highly recommended!
The country's current economic and political state and its educational curriculum changed after the great Cultural revolution in 1966. Exploitation, starvation, and poverty rose its numbers. The country was in a state of shock with its people tortured and humiliated, taking their things while some were forced to live away from their homes.
The worst thing is, schools were ordered to close and did not continue operating for three years. Although they graduated on time, they graduated without enough education. This is where J's student life started to get serious. With her own efforts through self-education and her Uncle Earnest's help, she made it to teach in the University in Jiatong, had a chance to study abroad with the help of her cousins, and eventually landed a good job to become a College professor for English major and literature.
An extraordinary real-life story. Very interesting. J's life defines all the odds for her dreams to come true. And thanks to the people who have never abandoned her. It's a good one. Highly recommended!
March 7, 2021
An inspiring story coupled with a rich historical background of China in the early 1960s. From over 50 notebooks and diaries kept by the author, she wrote her memoir on how she worked out to save her education after the schools were ordered to close in 1966, Cultural revolution.
With the school closed, many young students were left uneducated. Some of these young students were forced to look for work to help their starving families while others settled down in the countryside deep in the mountains. Perhaps, only a fraction of these students had the opportunity or have chosen to continue their education.
It offers a beautiful story of determinism to have a right to education and self-improvement. She lived up to Mao's wise words, "Study hard and make progress every day." The Cultural Revolution was a tragedy for Chinese peasants. With the little resources, she reminded herself over again of her PoPo's wise words, and with the help of her Uncle Earnest, teaching her for free to sharpen her English writing and speaking skills. There, she made it.
It was a good book. Highly recommended!
With the school closed, many young students were left uneducated. Some of these young students were forced to look for work to help their starving families while others settled down in the countryside deep in the mountains. Perhaps, only a fraction of these students had the opportunity or have chosen to continue their education.
It offers a beautiful story of determinism to have a right to education and self-improvement. She lived up to Mao's wise words, "Study hard and make progress every day." The Cultural Revolution was a tragedy for Chinese peasants. With the little resources, she reminded herself over again of her PoPo's wise words, and with the help of her Uncle Earnest, teaching her for free to sharpen her English writing and speaking skills. There, she made it.
It was a good book. Highly recommended!
August 30, 2023
I deeply appreciate Ms. Wang for sharing her story. Not only it inspired me as a student to see her struggles and perseverance despite everything that happened along the way. However, I was also able to picture out scenes of happiness, tragedy, strict cultural norms, strong parental control, and a patriarchal society that wanted nothing but to climb his/her way up the ladder - status quo and social classes through marriage.
To appreciate stories of a beautiful friendship, family, and to other people who had been part of her life. She travels in the Opera with her father, her visits to PoPo's place, and her almost love story with Summit.
J, (the main character) is a catalyst in her time. I was also impressed by how many books she had read as listed in her diary and notebooks. Her passion for literature is very evident in her story. Not only did she read classical Chinese, but also foreign authors as well. Reading this, I came to realize that whatever you have in mind as long as you work for it, someday you'll have its sweet fruit. A fruit of success. Loved it, will recommend it to my friends.
To appreciate stories of a beautiful friendship, family, and to other people who had been part of her life. She travels in the Opera with her father, her visits to PoPo's place, and her almost love story with Summit.
J, (the main character) is a catalyst in her time. I was also impressed by how many books she had read as listed in her diary and notebooks. Her passion for literature is very evident in her story. Not only did she read classical Chinese, but also foreign authors as well. Reading this, I came to realize that whatever you have in mind as long as you work for it, someday you'll have its sweet fruit. A fruit of success. Loved it, will recommend it to my friends.
August 31, 2023
How far can you go to make your dream into reality? Are you willing to make sacrifices and taking risks?
This is a captivating and inspiring story of a young woman who at a young age had faced life with great courage. With the school closed leaving many students uneducated after the 1966 Cultural revolution, J aspires to complete her education no matter what. She lived up to her nanny PoPo’s wise words to study hard, to keep reading books because the knowledge that is stored in your brain will never be taken. This was during the Red guard's operation on raiding houses and taking valuables, torturing and humiliating Chinese peasants.
J’s character imposes a strong sense of responsibility and discipline as she worked her way towards completing her education through her own efforts. With the help of her family, friends, and her Uncle Earnest, she became an accomplished woman bearing a highly rational mind.
The story also presented a rich historical background of China in the ’60s and its cultural norms and thoughts practiced by the people. Well-written and very detailed work, and exhibits professionalism. Great work! Highly recommended.
This is a captivating and inspiring story of a young woman who at a young age had faced life with great courage. With the school closed leaving many students uneducated after the 1966 Cultural revolution, J aspires to complete her education no matter what. She lived up to her nanny PoPo’s wise words to study hard, to keep reading books because the knowledge that is stored in your brain will never be taken. This was during the Red guard's operation on raiding houses and taking valuables, torturing and humiliating Chinese peasants.
J’s character imposes a strong sense of responsibility and discipline as she worked her way towards completing her education through her own efforts. With the help of her family, friends, and her Uncle Earnest, she became an accomplished woman bearing a highly rational mind.
The story also presented a rich historical background of China in the ’60s and its cultural norms and thoughts practiced by the people. Well-written and very detailed work, and exhibits professionalism. Great work! Highly recommended.
September 6, 2023
My favorite books have a pretty exclusive list and it usually takes me a while to decide whether a book fits that list or not but this was an instant favorite.
A very detailed description of what you all need to know about China’s political convulsion. J, our main character shows us her passion to learn despite the on-going Cultural Revolution in their country, which resulted in all students dropping out of school. In 1966, this revolution was launched by Mao Zedong, and his goal to preserve Chinese communism by purging remnants of capitalist and traditional elements from Chinese society catalyzed the bloodiest era of Chinese history.
J is the best fit for a role model to the scholars in our society today. Because just like in her times, we also encountered a crisis that becomes a hindrance to our education. This pandemic has made a huge impact on our lives, but it didn’t stop us and resort to another solution which is the new normal learning. Her pursuit of knowledge is never-ending. This should all be the root of inspiration to all students out there because the day you stop seeking knowledge is the day you stop growing.
A very detailed description of what you all need to know about China’s political convulsion. J, our main character shows us her passion to learn despite the on-going Cultural Revolution in their country, which resulted in all students dropping out of school. In 1966, this revolution was launched by Mao Zedong, and his goal to preserve Chinese communism by purging remnants of capitalist and traditional elements from Chinese society catalyzed the bloodiest era of Chinese history.
J is the best fit for a role model to the scholars in our society today. Because just like in her times, we also encountered a crisis that becomes a hindrance to our education. This pandemic has made a huge impact on our lives, but it didn’t stop us and resort to another solution which is the new normal learning. Her pursuit of knowledge is never-ending. This should all be the root of inspiration to all students out there because the day you stop seeking knowledge is the day you stop growing.
September 6, 2023
A historical moment that ended Jennie Wang's school education in China. In May 1966, communist leader Mao Zedong believed that their current leaders were leading them in the wrong direction, and in order to reassert his authority over the Chinese government, he introduced his ideology of the Cultural Revolution. The movement escalated swiftly as the students were influenced by Mao and formed paramilitary groups called the Red Guards to attack and harass members of the intellectual population such as teachers, celebrities and bourgeoisie.
Her size and age are the sole indications that she hasn't been around for years but she bravely pointed out the wrongdoings of their government. It’s an honor to read a story of a woman who stepped into the heart of this space, and showed us what it looks like to lead with courage and incredible moral clarity.
It really has a special place in my heart for it was truly beautiful. I don't think I'll be able to adequately put into words the power in which this novel has moved me. If you are into something historical with a touch of life story in it, this is the book for you.
Her size and age are the sole indications that she hasn't been around for years but she bravely pointed out the wrongdoings of their government. It’s an honor to read a story of a woman who stepped into the heart of this space, and showed us what it looks like to lead with courage and incredible moral clarity.
It really has a special place in my heart for it was truly beautiful. I don't think I'll be able to adequately put into words the power in which this novel has moved me. If you are into something historical with a touch of life story in it, this is the book for you.
September 6, 2023
One thing that I like in this book is the friendship between J and Klever. They were best of best friends who helped each other to learn and never thought of competing with each other. Neither of the two came to the point where they get jealous of the other's accomplishments. Both of them were at the top of their schools. They never failed to maintain a decent record, hence, their intelligence earn a respect from their teachers. But a long dream turned into a nightmare after the schools were shut down. They thought that if they wouldn't budge a bit and just go with the flow they will be left behind uneducated just like her other peers. And together, hand in hand, they educate themselves.
There is the kind of people you ought to befriend with. Those who will lift you and help you to get through your problems. Because a friend in need is a friend indeed. A lot of people walk in and out of your life, they come and go whenever they want, but those who leave imprints in your heart are the ones you should treasure for life. But most of all, a friend is someone who stayed with you during the worst seasons of your life.
There is the kind of people you ought to befriend with. Those who will lift you and help you to get through your problems. Because a friend in need is a friend indeed. A lot of people walk in and out of your life, they come and go whenever they want, but those who leave imprints in your heart are the ones you should treasure for life. But most of all, a friend is someone who stayed with you during the worst seasons of your life.
September 6, 2023
"It does not matter how slowly you go, so long as you do not stop." -Confucius
With our current situation, this book will definitely motivate us to continue and move forward against all odds. What happened in 1966 was very similar to our situation right now, whereas students were deprived of education because of the on-going crisis of COVID-19. The coronavirus pandemic has turned the spotlight on one of the problems that haven’t been resolved until now: making education accessible to all, under any circumstances. Although distance learning is a self-paced one, keeping the students to push throughout is another issue. To some, education is not their priority right now. Others are forced to work to provide even one meal for a day, but finances are just a factor, and internet accessibility is just part of a bigger problem. It's so sad that students were being left behind.
This is a book that will speak to us to continue despite everything that is happening across the globe. Just like how J strives to educate herself and continue to look for a reason to learn, we will also get through this.
With our current situation, this book will definitely motivate us to continue and move forward against all odds. What happened in 1966 was very similar to our situation right now, whereas students were deprived of education because of the on-going crisis of COVID-19. The coronavirus pandemic has turned the spotlight on one of the problems that haven’t been resolved until now: making education accessible to all, under any circumstances. Although distance learning is a self-paced one, keeping the students to push throughout is another issue. To some, education is not their priority right now. Others are forced to work to provide even one meal for a day, but finances are just a factor, and internet accessibility is just part of a bigger problem. It's so sad that students were being left behind.
This is a book that will speak to us to continue despite everything that is happening across the globe. Just like how J strives to educate herself and continue to look for a reason to learn, we will also get through this.
April 16, 2025
The story unfolds at a steady pace, building tension beautifully as Jennie Wang navigates two vastly different worlds. Her memoir is both a critique and a celebration of education, exposing its power to liberate or control.
Wang’s experience in China’s rigid, propaganda-driven system left her questioning everything. Education there was not about learning but about enforcing ideology. In contrast, Western schools encouraged critical thinking, yet often misunderstood non-Western cultures, reducing complex histories to oversimplified narratives. Her journey across these systems reveals that true education demands both intellectual freedom and cultural awareness.
Beyond her powerful words, the photos she shares add emotional depth, capturing real moments of joy, close family bonds, and the resilience that shaped her journey. They bring her story to life, preserving the essence of her experiences with warmth and authenticity. This memoir is not just about learning; it’s about challenging, questioning, and redefining knowledge itself. Wang’s story lingers long after the final page.
Wang’s experience in China’s rigid, propaganda-driven system left her questioning everything. Education there was not about learning but about enforcing ideology. In contrast, Western schools encouraged critical thinking, yet often misunderstood non-Western cultures, reducing complex histories to oversimplified narratives. Her journey across these systems reveals that true education demands both intellectual freedom and cultural awareness.
Beyond her powerful words, the photos she shares add emotional depth, capturing real moments of joy, close family bonds, and the resilience that shaped her journey. They bring her story to life, preserving the essence of her experiences with warmth and authenticity. This memoir is not just about learning; it’s about challenging, questioning, and redefining knowledge itself. Wang’s story lingers long after the final page.
April 29, 2025
Jennie Wang’s The Education of Jennie Wang is not just a memoir—it is a masterpiece of intellectual reflection, political critique, and personal resilience. Unlike other Cultural Revolution memoirs that focus on physical suffering, Wang explores the devastating impact of political indoctrination on education, identity, and intellectual freedom. Her journey from a star student in Shanghai to a self-taught survivor, and ultimately a professor in America, is nothing short of remarkable.
What makes this book unforgettable is Wang’s sharp, introspective writing, blending memoir with historical analysis. She exposes the parallels between past and present, warning against the manipulation of youth by political forces—whether in Maoist China or modern-day protests. Her discussion of the "Iron Curtain of Language", where shifting from Chinese to English changes her identity, is one of the most thought-provoking literary concepts in recent memoirs.
This book is not just about survival—it is about the power of knowledge to shape destiny. A must-read for anyone who values education, critical thinking, and the unbreakable spirit of the human mind.
What makes this book unforgettable is Wang’s sharp, introspective writing, blending memoir with historical analysis. She exposes the parallels between past and present, warning against the manipulation of youth by political forces—whether in Maoist China or modern-day protests. Her discussion of the "Iron Curtain of Language", where shifting from Chinese to English changes her identity, is one of the most thought-provoking literary concepts in recent memoirs.
This book is not just about survival—it is about the power of knowledge to shape destiny. A must-read for anyone who values education, critical thinking, and the unbreakable spirit of the human mind.
February 6, 2021
One of the things I like the most in this book is passion. A passion to learn despite the unfavorable things that happened. It embodies the role of a good student in times of crisis and to dream even more. It wasn't an easy path of course. There were full of struggles along the way but with the help of her families, friends, and tutors she was able to accomplish even more.
The story shows strong parental and patriarchal control. Emphasizing the roles of men and women, how important is money, status quo, and obtaining social status. It also included how common was family affairs and divorce in families during those times. Poverty and exploitation are also not uncommon in China. You will also be shocked by their rules, and traditions they practiced.
For J, a man must have ambition. A woman also must have ambition. And not just to marry and take care of their home, her husband, and children. Radical feminism is also greatly emphasized in this book.
Furthermore, this memoir offers a great deal of information on early China and how J's life as a student reacts to it.
The story shows strong parental and patriarchal control. Emphasizing the roles of men and women, how important is money, status quo, and obtaining social status. It also included how common was family affairs and divorce in families during those times. Poverty and exploitation are also not uncommon in China. You will also be shocked by their rules, and traditions they practiced.
For J, a man must have ambition. A woman also must have ambition. And not just to marry and take care of their home, her husband, and children. Radical feminism is also greatly emphasized in this book.
Furthermore, this memoir offers a great deal of information on early China and how J's life as a student reacts to it.
March 22, 2021
It is very unusual and disturbing that polygamy exists before. Wherein, J's Uncle Union had 2 wives and 5 children. In other nations, polygamous marriages are fueling poverty, neglecting one family over another, leaving thousands of women and children impoverished and easy prey for exploitation. Whereas, poverty and exploitation are very prevalent in China as well.
Other than its discussion on political ideologies, it also talks about Arranged marriages which have been around for a while and still exist up to this generation. This strong parental control over their children is just plain unjustifiable. It is crazy to think about it because I grew up in a society wherein arranged marriage isn't a norm. But that doesn't mean they should tolerate it simply because the natives are accustomed to tying knots with someone they don't love. Loveless marriages are just unethical, this practice is just savage to our society.
I like how it talks about cultural norms that are quite unbreakable even after laws because we can see how life is in another country.
Other than its discussion on political ideologies, it also talks about Arranged marriages which have been around for a while and still exist up to this generation. This strong parental control over their children is just plain unjustifiable. It is crazy to think about it because I grew up in a society wherein arranged marriage isn't a norm. But that doesn't mean they should tolerate it simply because the natives are accustomed to tying knots with someone they don't love. Loveless marriages are just unethical, this practice is just savage to our society.
I like how it talks about cultural norms that are quite unbreakable even after laws because we can see how life is in another country.
August 30, 2023
An inspiring story of a good student. Hope and courage to face the current crisis in the country, fighting for her dreams, and to never run away; instead, turning negativities into opportunities. After the great Cultural revolution erupted, J's journey for self-education started. She promised herself to complete her education no matter what it takes, to learn, and to continue her passion for English and literature. A real epitome of a good student.
With her mother, her beloved nanny PoPo, a few of her friends in school, and her uncle Earnest who is her tutor in English, teaching her for free greatly impacted her self-development to what she is now in the present. They somehow served as a bridge for her to cross for something bigger than herself and make radical changes to the people around her and into society as a whole.
This memoir offers a great historical reference in early China, particularly during the 1960s onwards. It is inspiring and clearly written; almost like a documentary of one's life. A well-documented legacy. Worthy to read.
With her mother, her beloved nanny PoPo, a few of her friends in school, and her uncle Earnest who is her tutor in English, teaching her for free greatly impacted her self-development to what she is now in the present. They somehow served as a bridge for her to cross for something bigger than herself and make radical changes to the people around her and into society as a whole.
This memoir offers a great historical reference in early China, particularly during the 1960s onwards. It is inspiring and clearly written; almost like a documentary of one's life. A well-documented legacy. Worthy to read.
August 30, 2023
J's dedication to learn and to follow her intellectual pursuits is an embodiment of a real student - a passion to learn amidst the crisis. With her courage and a strong sense for equality and justice; being outspoken in defying values based on what she believed had caused her to see beyond the government and society's errors. Educated in Marxist, Leninist theory, and Mao's Thoughts, she'd be hard to fool.
The author did not fail to provide the details of historical backgrounds in terms of events and places that J had visited, pictures for reference, and the story of every character involved.
The main character's development is evident as depicted heavily in every chapter. From Cultural Revolution, then self-education, working and her almost love-story with Summit, and to her departure to further her study for English Major and eventually became a professor in America.
Impressively written. Well documented and inspiring. Perfect for those who are interested in China's transition after its Cultural revolution.
The author did not fail to provide the details of historical backgrounds in terms of events and places that J had visited, pictures for reference, and the story of every character involved.
The main character's development is evident as depicted heavily in every chapter. From Cultural Revolution, then self-education, working and her almost love-story with Summit, and to her departure to further her study for English Major and eventually became a professor in America.
Impressively written. Well documented and inspiring. Perfect for those who are interested in China's transition after its Cultural revolution.
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