Entrancing and disturbing ... Demick’s characters are richly drawn, and her stories, often reported over a span of years, deliver a rare emotional wallop. ... If there is a flaw in this excellent book it is only that the story of a single family...is not a great vehicle for understanding Chinese family-planning policies as a whole ... Fortunately, Demick resists the impulse to tie things up in a neat bow.
Important records of how governments frequently turn to family separation as a punishment tactic ... Could be fodder for a pat happily-ever-after, but Demick largely sidesteps this temptation, focusing instead on the delicate and awkward process of forging a sustained relationship.
Demick...has written with impeccable empathy for everyone involved, Chinese and western ... She captures the essence of rural Chinese society in a way few western observers have done, while her portrait of Americans very different to herself...is sensitive and sympathetic.
Demick tells [these] stories with amazing levels of detail, nuance, empathy, and grace. She includes meticulous documentation and offers unique insights into life in rural China from the Maoist regime to the present day.
Moving, sensitive ... The details will still shock many readers ... Demick’s in-depth interviews and evocative writing portray Esther, Shuangjie and their relatives both as emblematic of their different cultures and as the complex individuals they are ... A moving story of fortitude and emotional growth.
Solid reportage and a deep knowledge of China inform this welcome study of a state-imposed social experiment gone awry ... Demick’s account of the twins’ eventual reunion is affecting, as well as a revealing study in cultural differences.
