February 2022 Bookclub News

Dear Bookclub,

Luncheon on the patio, Omicron not invited, made us smile and appreciate the power of in-person chat. Discussion of Qian Julie Wang's "Beautiful Country", on the agenda, quickly dissolved as everything under the 85 degree sun pressed upon us. Wang's account of her challenging childhood in Mei Guo revealed a world of sweat shops and under-the-radar life of the undocumented. Wondering how the leap from hours in the toilet transformed into a Yale educated civil rights lawyer, we sense a sequel. Not a favorite read as Wang's detailed descriptions fell outside the reality of a young child's ability to accurately recollect, we wondered about the disconnect. The story is powerful but oh, how I would have loved to edit and craft it into a more fluid telling, perhaps a novel based on Wang's life.

edition from the U.K.

https://www.offtherecorduk.com/review-beautiful-country-qian-julie-wang/

Please enjoy the above review from the U.K.'s "Off the Record" Imogen Marshall, who offers a different take on our distaste:

"She offers a mature adult perspective, whilst still living within her childhood perspective and innocence in some respects."

Marshall's review reminded me to put aside the irritant of the perspective-voice and appreciate the tenacity Wang displayed, teaching herself English while living in poverty, riddled with fear of being discovered as undocumented.

美国

Mei Guo, the Chinese reference to the United States,  translates into "beautiful country". Evidently, the official name seems more bewildering:  美利坚合众国 (meilijian hezhongguo), or “The United States of Beauty, Advantage and Endurance.” That's also our secret Olympic motto. Here is more than you can imagine on that history:

https://medium.com/@ttfcui/why-do-chinese-translate-america-as-the-beautiful-country-2cbabf2fef1a

 

Qian Julie Wang & Marc Gottlieb

 

An impressive August 31, 2019 New York Times article describes the then-upcoming marriage of Wang to Gottlieb and includes blurbs about her parents.... very interesting:

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/31/fashion/weddings/she-said-yes-every-time-he-asked.html
 

Together, their law firm, Gottlieb and Wang LLP, advocates for education and disability rights:

https://www.gottliebfirm.com/about-1

Again, impressive and a testament to Qian Julie's convictions to help others who have suffered as she understands.

 

My suggestions for an upcoming read:

"Better to Have Gone ....Love, Death The Quest for Utopia in Auroville" Akash Apur *chosen

"Say Nothing" Patrick Radden Keefe

"The Habit of Hidden Genius" Craig Wright

 Up next:

Happy reading,

LK