What we were promised
(Book)
Author:
Published:
New York : Little, Brown and Company, 2018.
Physical Desc:
328 pages ; 25 cm
Status:
Description
Set in modern Shanghai, a debut by a Chinese-American writer about a prodigal son whose unexpected return forces his newly wealthy family to confront painful secrets and unfulfilled promises.
After years of chasing the American dream, the Zhen family has moved back to China. Settling into a luxurious serviced apartment in Shanghai, Wei, Lina, and their daughter, Karen, join an elite community of Chinese-born, Western-educated professionals who have returned to a radically transformed city.
One morning, in the eighth tower of Lanson Suites, Lina discovers that a treasured ivory bracelet has gone missing. This incident sets off a wave of unease that ripples throughout the Zhen household. Wei, a marketing strategist, bows under the guilt of not having engaged in nobler work. Meanwhile, Lina, lonely in her new life of leisure, assumes the modern moniker taitai -a housewife who does no housework at all.
She is haunted by the circumstances surrounding her arranged marriage to Wei and her lingering feelings for his brother, Qiang. Sunny, the family's housekeeper, is a keen but silent observer of these tensions. An unmarried woman trying to carve a place for herself in society, she understands the power of well-kept secrets. When Qiang reappears in Shanghai after decades on the run with a local gang, the family must finally come to terms with the past and its indelible mark on their futures.
From a silk-producing village in rural China, up the corporate ladder in suburban America, and back again to the post-Maoist nouveaux riches of modern Shanghai, What We Were Promised explores the question of what we owe to our country, our families, and ourselves.
After years of chasing the American dream, the Zhen family has moved back to China. Settling into a luxurious serviced apartment in Shanghai, Wei, Lina, and their daughter, Karen, join an elite community of Chinese-born, Western-educated professionals who have returned to a radically transformed city.
One morning, in the eighth tower of Lanson Suites, Lina discovers that a treasured ivory bracelet has gone missing. This incident sets off a wave of unease that ripples throughout the Zhen household. Wei, a marketing strategist, bows under the guilt of not having engaged in nobler work. Meanwhile, Lina, lonely in her new life of leisure, assumes the modern moniker taitai -a housewife who does no housework at all.
She is haunted by the circumstances surrounding her arranged marriage to Wei and her lingering feelings for his brother, Qiang. Sunny, the family's housekeeper, is a keen but silent observer of these tensions. An unmarried woman trying to carve a place for herself in society, she understands the power of well-kept secrets. When Qiang reappears in Shanghai after decades on the run with a local gang, the family must finally come to terms with the past and its indelible mark on their futures.
From a silk-producing village in rural China, up the corporate ladder in suburban America, and back again to the post-Maoist nouveaux riches of modern Shanghai, What We Were Promised explores the question of what we owe to our country, our families, and ourselves.
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Central
FICTION Tan, L.
Due May 15, 2024
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Franklin
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Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Format:
Book
Edition:
First edition.
Language:
English
ISBN:
9780316437189, 0316437182
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Citations
APA Citation (style guide)
Tan, L. (2018). What we were promised. First edition. New York, Little, Brown and Company.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)Tan, Lucy. 2018. What We Were Promised. New York, Little, Brown and Company.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)Tan, Lucy, What We Were Promised. New York, Little, Brown and Company, 2018.
MLA Citation (style guide)Tan, Lucy. What We Were Promised. First edition. New York, Little, Brown and Company, 2018.
Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.
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Grouped Work ID:
228494a7-39fa-8dad-859e-a0e56b945bb0
Record Information
Last Sierra Extract Time | Apr 30, 2024 01:35:35 PM |
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Last File Modification Time | Apr 30, 2024 01:39:04 PM |
Last Grouped Work Modification Time | May 01, 2024 02:10:18 AM |
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