3.5 generational trauma stars

This is a unique book and I admit, difficult to review! It’s a mix of historical elements, cultural elements, the life difficulties women can face, and science all thrown in the mix.

There are several women’s stories in the book. I appreciated that there was a good chunk devoted to each, rather than hopping around changing characters in short chapters.

Dorothy is the most contemporary character, and in fact futuristic, living in 2045 Seattle, which by the way has horrible weather with hurricanes battering the coast. Dorothy is struggling with depression, and she finds a new therapy that explores inherited trauma. She undergoes treatment in the hopes of healing the past.

We learn about Dorothy’s ancestors, Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman to come to the U.S. with her bound feet on display. There’s Lai King, quarantined during a plague, Faye who was a nurse in China, Zoe a student at a boarding school, and Greta, a tech genius with a dating app creation. Each woman has struggles that seem to be compounded by the women that came before them.

The writing is excellent, but it’s hard to describe exactly what happens in this book. If you are open to reading something a bit different, I recommend this one.

And don’t miss the author notes at the end. It was fascinating to read that epigenesis is a real science, studied for example with the children of holocaust survivors.

The Many Daughters of Afong Moy by Jamie Ford

This is a difficult review to write because I can't really tell you what happened in this story. I don't understand what happened, or how it happened, or why it happened. I'd never heard of epigenetics (the study of heritable phenotype changes that do not involve alterations in the DNA sequence) before I read this book.

We see this story from the viewpoint of seven women. They are all related and affected by transgenerational trauma, trauma passed down from one generation to the next. Each woman can feel something, emotions from a past that she has never experienced. Some of the women don't know the history of the women before her so she can't even explain her feelings of discomfort, anxiety, and despair as the product of hearing stories of her ancestors' difficult past.

Afong leads the way for these seven women and Afong is based on a real person, the first Chinese woman to set foot in America. From her sad start we progress to the stories of the women who come after her. The story is not told in chronological order but instead we weave back and forth between pivotal times in each woman's lives. Annabel is at the end of this line of women, many years into our future, and thanks to her mother's experience with new and improving treatments, Annabel and many of her ancestors are able to feel/experience their past, present, and future differently.

The story was interesting but very sad, seeing how the women were affected by the cruelty and indifference of their fellow man. I would have liked to have better understood how Dorothy may have changed what had happened to something different. My mind imagines chaos for the future, in changing the past, but we don't see that in this story.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

The premise that past traumas can resurface in future generations is fascinating. This story is beautifully written and extremely fascinating, weaving science with fiction.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

I've long been interested in epigenetics and Jamie Ford has written the perfect book pushing the what-ifs to their limits. A story about how we inherit everything--including loss and joy--turns what is bleak into something beautiful.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Beware the SPOILER ALERT concerning the book’s ending.

The book has two central storylines, the primary being that of Afong Moy and her descendants, which were the best part of the book. Afong Moy was a real-life character, although we don’t know of any descendants. In 1834, she arrived in America, the first Chinese woman in the States. She then went on to travel the country as a performer in entertainment shows, eventually working for P. T. Barnum. Accounts of Afong stop in 1851, and it is uncertain where she went or what happened to her. For this book, the author has given her a line of six generations of female descendants, and each story is interesting and each personality distinctly different from the others.

I would have loved it if the book had just stopped with Afong and her progeny. However, the secondary storyline is that of Afong’s descendant Dorothy, who in 2045 pursues epigenetics, or inherited trauma, as a means of coping with some psychological issues. That storyline just didn’t work for me, perhaps because I don’t want to believe trauma can be passed down as a legacy to our next generations. Imagine all the pain, suffering and anguish of all our ancestors, and that heap of misery befalling someone from birth.

The ending was also unsatisfying. SPOILER ALERT: Dorothy is able to travel in time, and changes the course of her ancestors’ decisions and actions, yet it never is quite clear that it had any effect on her life, so it seemed quite pointless.

The writing is good and the characters engaging, but the secondary storyline just undid it all for me. According to Goodreads, I am in the minority when it comes to praise for this book.

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The Many Daughters of Afong Moy by Jamie Ford

I loved Jamie Ford's HOTEL ON THE CORNER OF BITTER AND SWEET. And this novel is as beautifully written, well-researched, and informative.

In the mid-1800s, Afong Moy was the first female Chinese immigrant to the United States. She traveled to different cities, with her bound feet, as a humiliating sideshow.

The novel weaves the story of Afong, her female descendants, and their traumatic experiences passed along in DNA.

I thought the story presented an interesting and thought-provoking concept, epigenesis, and I appreciate how difficult it must have been to connect the women, their lives, and their traumas.. With several different timelines and characters—ping-ponging back and forth—I had a tough time keeping track of who was who.

Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book. Oh this book. I found myself breathless when it was over. Jamie Ford sends you on a journey through generations. At times you won’t really understand quite where your destination is, but the ride is beautiful. This book is going on my special shelf where I keep the books that strike a chord in my soul, the ones that when generations after me want to know what my spirit is made of, they can read the books on that shelf. Transportive and transformative. I am so excited to press this books into as many hands as possible.

multigenerational, cultural-exploration, cultural-heritage, customs-and-belief-systems, Chinese-customs, Chinese-culture, China, family-dynamics, family, historical-places-events, historical-research, history-and-culture*****

This novel takes the genetic principles of inherited physical traits (coloring, diseases, height, etc.) and applies it to psychological elements of oneself, but not necessarily in a direct line. The stories of several women of a family beginning with the first known Chinese woman in America but living in different locations and eras are interwoven and very moving while crossing the lines from historical all the way to spec fiction. I really liked it, and not just because it is so different.
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Atria Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

I was a little nervous reading this after seeing that there is a lot of back and forth between time period. I've read books like this before and always got lost in confusion so to speak.
However, this was not the case here. There was just a natural flow to the book that made it easy to follow and keep the story straight it my head.
This was beautifully written and I can't believe how talented the author is with this story. I feel like almost any other author may have destroyed the story, but Ford kept it going

Thank you so much to NetGalley and publisher for the arc.

This book totally swept me away--I am not usually a fan of historical fiction (which is really only one aspect of this book, it is also in the present/future) but the threads that tie all these characters together and the immediacy with which you are just thrust into their worlds had me hooked and totally immersed right away. I also absolutely loved that it has the feel and scope of an epic, but is not a doorstop. The deep feeling of connectedness and the specter of these women's epigenetic connections is always there as a undercurrent, along with the urgency of what they face in their own present-tenses.

This book is wild! The various characters and the tragedy they kept meeting actually made me really sad at times.At other times, hopeful. Excellent writing and I hope to read more from this author!

What a beautiful, expansive multi generational story. The writing is sublime and the story utterly unique; a well layered and richly woven tale that will definitely be a book club pick and should resonate with alot of ppl (particularly wondering what gets passed down and embedded in our DNA). So much to discuss with other readers which always makes a book a must read for me.

This rich multilayered story features generations of a Chinese family with multiple POVs in various times spanning from the early 1800s to the not so distant future.

Each woman has a vague genetic memory of previous generations. Their experiences become interwoven and contain common circumstances.

The story had me wondering if any of my quirks, phobias, or interests stem from the experiences that my ancestors have had.

I was provided a free copy of this book by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

If genetic traits are passed down through generations is it possible that traumatic experiences are also being passed down through our genes? That is the premise of this fictional story of generations of Chinese and Chinese American women whose past traumatic experiences are relived in future generations. The storyline begins in 1836 with the arrival of Afong Moy the first Chinese women to set foot in America ending one hundred fifty years later in 2086 with Annabelle, Afong’s direct descendent. Interesting concept.

What a powerful novel! I didn't want the story to end!
Dorothy Moy struggles with memories and associations that make no sense. When her daughter begins to exhibit the same symptoms, Dorothy starts an experimental treatment. She explores transgenerational epigenetic inheritance and begins to connect with past generations of women in her family.
This book tells pieces of the stories of Faye Moy, a nurse in China serving with the Flying Tigers; Zoe Moy, a student in England at a famous school with no rules; Lai King Moy, a girl quarantined in San Francisco during a plague epidemic; Greta Moy, a tech executive with a unique dating app; and Afong Moy, the first Chinese woman to set foot in America. Each woman is connected in a unique way, and that makes the story interesting. I also enjoyed the history lessons.
Through her recollections, Dorothy endeavors to break the cycle of pain and abandonment, to finally find peace for her daughter, and gain love. She may also learn to calm her ocean, recognize a pattern of behavior, trauma and loss, and rewrite the script to reconcile her memories.

"All of this is a stepping stone ... in a wide river that connects us all." A Buddhist monk is speaking to Faye Moy in the mortuary temple where she sits beside her downed pilot, wondering why he carried a photo of her with a message, "Find me." The concept of epigenetics runs through the text: inherited trauma, remembered experiences, shared memories. The beginning, of course, is Afong Moy whose trauma is carried for generations. The novel's story is told by six different people who Ford has woven together with their individual trauma and experiences and memories, from the early 1800s up to the near future in 2045 when the climate crisis is making other trauma evident.
I especially liked the imagery of living in the penthouse of the Smith Tower in a futuristic Seattle. I have sat in the royal Chinese chair on the Observation Level of the Smith Tower and can imagine what it would be like in an apocalyptic ARkStorm.
I think Ford has provided us with another remarkable novel of history and story, memories and connections, trauma and healing. Highly recommended.

I read an Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley. Thank you.

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It was a good book with a unique take on the plot told from multiple pov. The author has a we of telling the Chinese American story in and engaging and informative way . I love his writing style . Very good book

I really enjoyed this book. It was like nothing I've ever read before. Even though there were multiple points of view, it wasn't hard to keep up with the individual characters. It was written beautifully and I enjoyed learning about all the characters. I highly recommend this book! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the arc in return for an honest review!

What if your ancestors' traumas were a part of your DNA? Ford takes the true story of the first Chinese woman in America and imagines what would have happened to her generations of daughters. While I don't always like this type of science fiction, there was enough realism to make me love it. Each "daughter" of Afong Moy has her own story to tell and trauma to withstand. For readers who liked the Island of the Sea Women.

A combination of historical fiction and futuristic sci/fi/fantasy, Ford takes a look at the life and descendants of the first Chinese woman in the US. With her exotic looks, bound feet, "strange" language, Afong Moy became an entertainment sensation in the mid-19th century. Ford explores her life and the the impact her experiences had on 5 succeeding generations of women, even though none of them ever knew Afong personally.

Told in alternating chapters set in time periods from the mid 1800s to 2045, In a futuristic Seattle, climate change has spawned typhoons and other dramatic weather events that send residents fleeing to higher ground. Dorothy Moy is a poet who is battling depression and looking for ways to prevent her issues from impacting her daughter. At an experimental clinic, she undergoes treatment that brings up "memories" that have been inherited from her distant ancestor, Afong, and all the women that link Dorothy to her.

I have always enjoyed Ford's books. On the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is one of my favorites. I enjoyed reading this book as well, even though the "science" of Dorothy's treatments stretched the imagination. Some will find the time swapping disconcerting, others will take issue with the hallucinations (or memories, or whatever they are) that Dorothy experiences that send her into the experiences of her ancestors. I admit it was a bit confusing at times. This is a worthy effort, though, and it is a timely book since it focuses on the effect of generational trauma which has been a topic of much discussion lately. This would make a great book club book. I can imagine much discussion of the issues and the writing style.