Review: Do Not Say We Have Nothing was chosen as a summer read for my book club and I am so glad I gave it a read! 

My favorite part about the novel is how the past and present are intertwined. Thien does a fantastic job revealing events to the reader that are chronologically out of order. To link the past to the present, Thien introduces a multitude of characters and writes from each of their perspectives. Many of these characters end up interacting with one another, creating interrelation. 

I also enjoyed the novel’s historical elements and look into Chinese culture. One of the timelines within Do Not Say We Have Nothing takes place during the Cultural Revolution in the China. I did not know much about this sociopolitical movement prior to reading Thien’s work. Throughout my time spent with the text, I learned much about Zedong’s cruelty and the millions of lives that were lost. With each chapter I read, I did more and more research and I appreciate the novel for pushing me to do so. In addition to learning more about historical events such as the Cultural Revolution, I was exposed to Chinese culture. Thien introduces to the reader to Chinese characters in the very first chapter. It was fascinating to learn how the meaning of certain characters change when they are combined with others. 

Though there were many parts of this novel I enjoyed, it took me a while to get into it. At times, the book put me into a reading slump. I think one of the reasons I had a hard time getting into this book can be attributed to the fact that there were too many characters and I didn’t connect with them. Their stories felt secondary to some of the musical and historical elements which were overwhelming in and of themselves. Music is tied to many of the characters and many composers and pieces were mentioned that I was not familiar with. Because so many references were made, I eventually gave up doing research because I just wanted to finish the story. 

That being said, I am grateful to have been introduced to Thien’s work! Her writing is both spectacular and complex.

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