Thursday Thanksgiving Canon

So many books to be thankful for ...

Happy Thanksgiving readers! The holiday season is among us and with it, a book that I am extremely thankful for in this week’s canon. Spending time at home with my family, but especially my mom, who I am so thankful for, made me remember this book. If you haven’t read it, you MUST. There is debate online over if this is already in the literary canon or not, so I decided to double down and definitely add it to TBM’s.

I hope you all have a happy holiday, and curl up with a good book (maybe this one) after the inevitable turkey/carb coma later!

WHO: The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

WHERE: The Book Maven Podcast New Canon

WHAT: This novel follows the stories of four Chinese immigrant mothers and their four American-born daughters as they navigate life in San Fransisco. The complex relationships between each pair are explored, highlighting the generational differences as well as the cultural differences they were raised around. This novel is a tear-jerker with moving prose and a storyline that you won’t be able to walk away from.

WHY: I think this story gives an important glimpse into the dynamic between immigrant parents and their children, and explains why the relationship can sometimes be so complicated. It also humanizes parents, and in this case specifically mothers. By being able to learn the mothers background in the story, readers are able to see why they are the way they are and why they hold certain expectations for their daughters. We get to see the mother’s past that is largely unknown to their children, and we can sympathize with both. Real life does not always offer us this advantage. This book changed me and the way that I view my own mother, and I think it’s a crucial read, to teenagers especially, in their ‘growing up’ years when they are most at odds with their parents. On top of everything, it is a beautiful and well-written novel.

I am canoning The Joy Luck Club!

What are some books you are thankful for?