A rich and beautiful story full of history and elegant language.

Li-Yan lives in the Spring Well Village, one of the many villages of the Akha people. Akha people, are one of the many ethnic tribes of people who live in the Yunnan province of China. Li-Yan falls in love with classmate Sen-pa from the Shelter Shadow Village but their parents do not approve of the marriage. Li-Yan finds out she is pregnant with his child. Because it's taboo to have a child unmarried, Li-Yan end up abandoning her daughter at an orphanage with a tea cake instead of following tradition to kill the child. Her daughter, Haley, ends up being adopted by an American couple in California. Both Li-Yan and Haley is curious about each other and they hope to find answers about each other.

A-ma can be very strict about things in the family but because Li-Yan is her only daughter, she tries to help Li-Yan during the pregnancy and conceal it from the family since its taboo to be pregnant when unmarried. Li-Yan had to give up her dream to past an exam to go to college but she wanted to make sure can provide a good life for her child. Her sacrifice for many things has helped her daughter obtain a better life.

Although her life is a constant struggle, Li-Yan is able to relocate away from her Akha home to a trade school in Kunming to start off with a clean slate. The mother and daughter relationships are vital in the novel just like how the special ancient tea grove is passed down the family from mother to daughter. The women in The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane are strong women; they are resilient.

Lisa See's The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is beautifully written and it's compelling. Her narration is that of a well versed storyteller. She educates readers about the traditions and culture of the Akha people. I found it very interesting to learn more about the Akha people and See did her research well. The art of tea is explained exquistely throughout the book. I am a huge tea lover so I found it fascinating to read. Cultivating tea to brewing tea is very complex and tea aficionados will enjoy reading about the history of tea, especially of Pu'er. Through tea Li-Yan is connected to her family roots and most importantly to her daughter. The yellow threads in the tea cakes bring the family together.

The novel is mostly in first person through Li-Yan's perspective. See starts the novel off with Li-Yan being about 10 and ends the novel when Li-Yan is in her mid to late 30s. Through letters and support group dialogue, readers peer into Haley's life and how she is doing. Although heartbreaking at times, See has captured the spirit of what it means to be a daughter and a mother. While Li-Yan is separated from her daughter, she yearns for her every day. Haley always thinks about her birth mother and the tea cake.

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is a story about tradition, culture, family, love, loss, sacrifice, perseverance, new beginnings and origins. The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is by far my favorite novel by See and it makes a wonderful reading companion to Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. I highly recommend this novel.

5 Stars. Lisa See writes some amazing historical fiction and this book is no exception. The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is rich in detail and meticulously researched, taking you inside the culture of the indigenous Akha Tribe of China, and describing the history of tea as well. As a matter of fact, I had to keep reminding myself that this story took place in modern times, caught up in the details of the Akhas traditions. It truly took me to another place and time. I found my self caring so much about the characters, and was truly invested in learning the outcome of all of their relationships. It was very hard to put this down once I started it. Highly recommended to fans of Lisa See, and historical fiction in general. I found this to be one of her best, right up on my list with Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. This is one book that I would love to own on my shelf. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to enjoy an ARC of this work. I look forward to reading so much more by this author.

See once again manages to deftly weave together a very interesting story with Chinese history, culture and this time the Akha mountain tea growers. we not only learn about the culture of the Chinese mountain people in the mid to late 20th century, but also about American families who adopt a Chinese girl. And, then to make sure we're engaged we get love found, love lost, and much about pu'er tea and the growth of the tea industry in the early 2000s outside of China. I am grateful to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this very interesting book.

Woman (Li-yan/Girl) revolts against the cultural beliefs and upbringing of the Akha hill people of China. "No coincidence, no story."

Li-Yan/Girl and the Akha people of China believe in and follow so many wives' tales, rules, expectations, symbols, superstitions, and omens in their culture. Li-Yan's family earns a living by growing, harvesting, and selling tea leaves. Li-yan's mother (A-ma) is a midwife, which makes her the most important woman in the village, but she is of course still lower than every man and boy.

Teacher Zhang encourages Li-yan's father and the village leaders to allow her to continue her studies long after a girl child would normally be forced to quit school, and she becomes the first child in her Akhan village to pass a test and proceed to second-level school. There, she meets and falls in love with San-pa. They wish to marry, but Li-yan's father refuses to grant consent to their union because their birth signs are incompatible. San-pa leaves the country to make his fortune, but soon after his departure, Li-yan discovers she is pregnant. Since she is unmarried, custom dictates that she kill her "reject" baby. Instead, and much to Li-yan's surprise, her mother breaks with tradition and allows Li-yan to abandon her baby, Yan-yeh/Haley, at an orphanage.

Meanwhile, a stranger (Huang) arrives in the village looking for "old" tea leaves which have been worthless in the past. Since Li-yan is the only one who can understand Mandarin, she acts as a translator, and much to her surprise, negotiates an extremely high price for the tea leaves.

The story continues for another 20 years following Li-yan and her daughter, who was adopted by a white couple in America... Overall, this was a wonderful story of perseverance, a mother's love, and hope. This was the first book I read by Lisa See, and I can't wait to read more!

Last but not least, be sure to read the "Acknowledgements" section by the author as it enriched the story in many ways. For instance, the author shared the coincidences ("No coincidence, no story") she experienced while writing this book. This is one that will stay with me. Solid 4.5 stars.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

I picked this up when I saw the See name. I thought it started a bit slow but then I could not put it down. Sometimes her descriptions of the tea drug on but I hung in there and am so glad I did. This was an A++ for me

Li-yan, our main character, is a member of the Akha, the indigenous people who live in the hills of the Yunnan Province of China. Li-yan’s life, like that of her tribe, centers around growing and picking tea. When a stranger visits from a very different part of the world, everything about their lives begin to change. Li-yan, the most highly-educated girl in her village, translates for him. She soon discovers that the stranger wants something that traditions have forced Li-yan and her mother to keep secret and hidden.

In spite of the fact that Li-yan was brought up among the isolated Akha people and has lived her entire life on the mountain among them, she still cannot understand the sense behind some of their superstitions and traditions. When these superstitions and traditions force her to make the ultimate sacrifice, she does what she has to do, which leaves behind an emptiness in her heart. When she leaves her family and the secluded mountain village, she finds that the traditions that she once resented have became precious to her.

I am always changed by an extraordinary book, and this is a truly extraordinary book. I am sure it is the best I have read in a long time. The characters are beautifully and realistically developed, and the plot is both exciting and endearing. This is a moving story of family and tradition and change. It is about over-coming problems and of striving for more. It is unforgettable and meaningful.

This wonderful story is educational as well. I loved learning about the customs and traditions of the Akha people, as well as about the growing, harvesting, value and healthfulness of tea. This book is one in a million!

Scribner and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane. This is my honest opinion of the book.

Li-yan lives in a remote village in China, whose main source of income is the tea that they have been farming for generations. When a stranger brings the modern world to the Akha people, Li-yan begins to embrace the new culture and rejects the ways of her people. After an unplanned pregnancy, which results in an adoption, derails Li-yan from her village completely, she ends up living a very different future than the one her parents had planned. Will Li-yan be able to reconcile her traditions of her past with the ways of the present? Will true happiness be in Li-yan's future?

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is a wonderfully imagined story about a young girl living in unspoiled country, following the traditions of the generations that had come before. The author did an excellent job of creating a realistic world for Li-yan to live and grow. I was pulled into the story and was captivated by both the plot and the characters. Although there are other main players in the book, Li-yan's life drives the story forward. My only criticism is that the ending was a little too abrupt and tied everything together too neatly. I would highly recommend The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane to readers who like stories steeped in tradition and heritage.

First let's set up a couple of things:
1) this book is about tea. How it's grown, picked, fermented, dried, wrapped, sold, etc.
2) this book is about being a Chinese minority (Akha) and how that makes one standout
3) and this book is about international adoption. Both sides of adoption are explored here; the parent giving away their child and the child whom has been given up

The narrative is beautiful and generally compelling. The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is without doubt a historical fiction novel; it's just that the history it tells is quite recent. And for many, including myself, it's always sobering and a bit shocking to think of people living without common amenities (like electricity and running water) in the late part of the 20th century. And not because necessarily choose to be without technology but because they are so poor and remotely located these amenities are foreign to them.

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane is so well researched you could probably write a thesis about the tradition and origin of tea from it. I hadn't read a Lisa See book before this and didn't know what to expect. At times while reading this I wondered how much was really true about the tea trade and Akha tradition. Had I paid attention I would have found out sooner (than the acknowledgements) that Lisa See did tons of research; never mind, she visited the area and villages she speaks about! This means the richness and details of tea and the culture are impeccable. It's even better that because they are presented in the context of our story the details are never boring.

I know a few people have been put off by the beginning of this novel, and I too was a bit unsure. The introduction includes a very graphic description of a birth and a horror immediately following it. I can see how some would immediately stop reading for fear the whole book is this way. Rest assured, it's not. The most graphic parts are early in the story and not a common theme throughout. It is worth the pay-off to stick through the beginning if your at all captivated by Lisa See's gorgeous story and writing.

That said, I can't help but feel this book would probably be five stars for me if there had been a little more restraint with the graphic details of birthing in a village with no amenities. As someone whom has not had children (and cannot) I felt like the explicit descriptions here were excessive and in the end added no real value even for someone like me who has not experienced or witnessed birth firsthand. I think it could have been described without all the gory moments. Another small critique is that midway through I felt like I had just read a thought and there it was repeated. So perhaps a tiny bit of editing the fat would have helped (not details of the tea or Akha; just the narrative of our main gal was a bit repetitive).

Overall, a gorgeous book that reveals a part of Chinese (minority) culture most didn't even know existed (myself included). I would go far as to say this is the 'Memoirs of a Geisha' for the Akha.

If you are at all intrigued by any of the following: Chinese culture, tea, one child policy, international adoption, the love a mother has, how a group goes from a traditional tribe to becoming a part of the 21st century, or historical fiction in general, then I believe you will enjoy this book immensely.

4.5 stars.

Lisa See has made me very happy. She can always be trusted to provide historical pieces that both entertain and inform the reader. So even though the only tea I care to drink is Arizona Zero Calorie Green with Ginseng, I now know more about making tea in China than I could ever imagine, and I loved reading about the ancient customs and superstitions of the mountain people known as the Akha. Li-Yan's Akha family spent their lives selling tea, her mother also using it for medicinal purposes and hoping to pass her skills on to her only daughter.

Li-Yan was forced to leave her firstborn daughter with an orphanage, from which the baby was later adopted by white Americans. Li-Yan was intent on making it as an educated tea seller, while always wondering about the baby she gave up. Although most pages are dedicated to Li-Yan's story, we also get to know the little girl as she matures into a young Chinese - American scholar, curious about her Chinese heritage and especially the tea cake that accompanied her into the orphanage as a baby.

I found many similarities between this book and Secret Daughter, which took place in India and America. I thought that one had a disappointing ending. This book, though... The last chapter is sure to tug at your heartstrings. A beautiful book! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher.

Best I've read by Lisa See yet. She just keeps getting better and better. This is a rich tale on so many levels. Fascinating story of the cultural minority Akha tribe of Yunnan, China. Poignant heart-breaking tale of separation, loss, love, family tradition versus enroaching modern ways...and so much more. And a great history of tea which has never interested me much, being a coffee person. But now I'm off to buy some Pu-erh!

This is my favorite Lisa See book to date. I love all of her books she is one of my favorite authors however this one was absolutely amazing from the beginning to the end I could not put it down.

4 1/2 stars. I have been a fan of Lisa See's since Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, which is one of my favorites. This compelling family saga follows characters through their lives in China and California. I found the book so beautifully written that it was hard to put down.

An insightful and interesting look at the Akha tribe in China. Some of their rituals and beliefs seemed very dated - yet much of the book was set in recent years, so it was definitely an eye-opener. I enjoyed the strong female character of Li-Yan, and there are many threads to this complex novel.

I've been trying to read more books set in Asia and Africa so I gave this one a try. I did learn something about traditions and superstitions in China and a little about the political situation but unfortunately this book just wasn't my style. The first thing that turned me off was the first person, present tense narration, which I usually hate. And then there were all the domestic details - courtship, childbirth, bad marriages. I liked the cultural details but not the plot, so I should probably try some nonfiction about China (or just a different fiction writer). There is also only so much I can take of infant murder, animal sacrifices and disemboweling. I made it to about the half way point of this book.

I received a free copy of the ebook from the publisher, but I listened to the audiobook borrowed from the library.

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See presents a culture to explore and a strong heroine to feel for. For me, the first and the second half of the book don't match up. The first half is more focused; the second half feels more scattered and rushed. The deeper and slower pace of the first half works better in this case. The book is still enjoyable in its entirety, but some of the depth is lost to the momentum and speed of the second half.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2017/04/the-tea-girl-of-hummingbird-lane.html

Reviewed for NetGalley

Rich in tradition and culture, this is an engaging story about mothers and daughters navigating through a changing world and the bridging of East and West. I enjoyed this book almost as much as my favorite See book, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan.

See’s research of the Akha tribal people is impressive. I was fascinated by the culture and lifestyle of these remote ‘hill’ people who believes that every living thing has a spirit. I was appalled by some of the cruel traditions they’d adopted, like the ‘human reject’ policy. I can’t get that piece out of my mind.

Seamlessly weaving in historical facts, Lee transported me into Li-yan’s world spanning 20+ years. Li-yan is a strong character and I was sympathetic to her sorrows. The tea trade threads, from origin to harvesting, were inspired by See’s own participation in a tea ceremony. She delves deeply into this integral part of the Chinese culture. It brought back memories of my own visit to a Chinese tea growing farm a few years ago, viewing the tea fields and participating in a tea ceremony.

I recommend this book to not only those who are Lisa See fans but for others who want to discover this author who knows how to write and capture a reader’s attention. You won’t be disappointed.

*Besides below links, also posting to twitter, B&N and Powells.

I would give this book a 3.5, rounded up.

This novel is really a unique experience for a special kind of reader. Lisa See has a way of drawing the reader in with a quiet kind of patience. There is something of the mythical to her quality. She writes meticulously - which is not to say boring- it's to say that her canvas is full of such rich details that there is no place for your mind to wander that isn't already fleshed out for you. Her attention to detail is thorough, and it is the kind of writing that sweeps you away gently to other worlds that you had never even imagined existed. This is the China I've never even heard about; mystical ancient China existing side by side in modern China. This is why I read. This book (and story) is epic in size and asks to be read slowly.

This book does bring to light for me personally a whole group of young women who I also had never paused to consider: Mostly because it was of my generation, and I was a child myself at the time, I had never fully digested the flood of baby girls coming over to the United States in the 80s and 90s due to the One Child Policy and what that meant. But it's true that a common topic of conversation among the wealthier families at my very bougie private school growing up, was the possibility of adopting a Chinese baby girl. It's strange how these things can register as a child and then you can really come to understand the experience on a global level later in life.

I will say - the experience of this book is not at all what I expected from the synopsis. Risking slight spoilers: [ the lives of the mother-daughter pair, Li-Yan and Haley run parallel for a span of many years. I for some reason expected that both women had been taken in by an American family.]

If there was anything lacking, I would say that as large amounts of time were skipped over (to speed the plot through several years) I felt cheated out of more of Ms. See's wonderfully intricate storytelling. A story of this scope asks to be written into volumes (a la Ferrante), and while slow-paced at times, I feel it would be enjoyed as a whole more in that format. Save this one for a rainy weekend, an isolated cabin vacation, or a trip alone. It's a beautiful story.

Thank you Lisa See, Scribner, and NetGalley for my advanced eARC of this book.

I suspect that Lisa See’s latest novel, The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, will be another bit hit! It is full of compelling characters, Li-yan, her A-ma, San-pa, the people in her village in China and her mentors and business associates. All are multi-dimensional and interesting.
I was particularly struck by the character development of Li-yan and her daughter. Li-yan grows from a child in almost medieval China, to adulthood in the Pan-Pacific trade between China and the US, and Haley as a pampered child in the LA basin to young adulthood.

The books is full of sensory details, the smell of fermenting tea, the sounds and smells of disembarking in Asia from a long flight from the US.

I received this ARC from netgalley.com in exchange for a review.

Another great novel by Lisa See. The book starts out in the late 1980's but it feels more like the 1880's. Li-Yan grows up in a remote mountain village where picking tea, homeopathic remedies and superstition is the only way of life. At 16 and unmarried, she has a baby and surrenders the child to an adoption center which sends her daughter to America for adoption.

Li-Yan is fortunate and able to attend school where she goes on to succeed in her own business, marries well and lives in America but eventually comes back to her roots in China.

It's all about the tea. Throughout the book, the history of tea (which does get a little tedious) and the Akha people is the focus, but the story and tradegy of Li-Yan is neatly woven in. Good book, must read.

4 ☆