Chinese Cinderella book cover.
cover of Chinese Cinderella |
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| Author | Adeline Yeh Mah |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Delacourte Press |
| Publication date | |
| Published in English | 1999 |
| Media type | Print () |
| Pages | 205 |
| ISBN | ISBN 0385227072 |
Chinese Cinderella is a novel written by author Adeline Yen Mah which describes her experiences growing up in China during the Second World War. It was published in 1999.
Plot summary
Adeline Yen Mah is born into a rich and privileged family, but she is considered to be bad luck due to the death of her mother during complications in giving birth to her. As a result, she is neglected by her father, Joseph Yen, a successful businessman and her four siblings. When her father remarries, her Eurasian stepmother, Jeanne Prosperi (whom the children called "Niang", which means Mother)treats her and her siblings coldly while spoiling her own children and soon Jun-ling's older sister, who was their leader. (Jun-ling's half-brother and half-sister) " Adeline Yen Mah was born in Tianjin, China. Her mother died two weeks after her birth and Adeline was considered to be a source of bad luck by her family. Her father remarried a beautiful Eurasian woman one year later. She was half French and half Chinese and divided the Yen family into two different classes. Adeline's father, aunt, grandfather, stepmother and her two children were the upper class, where as Adeline and the four other step-children by the first wife were considered second class." Niang was described as a stunningly beautiful woman, who had a French father and a Chinese mother. To show this, she wore beautiful and expensive jewelery and clothing made in France. She is depicted as a cruel and manipulative woman. She married Joseph Yen, Adeline's father, when she was 17 years old. In marrying him, she also gained five Chinese stepchildren. She gave each of them (including Adeline) their European names: Her Big Sister, Jun-pei became Lydia, Her Three Brothers, Zi-jie, Zi-lin and Zi-jun were called Gregory, Edgar and James. Later her Step-mother gave birth to two children called Franklin and Susan ( Jun-qing ) Her two children of her own: Franklin and Susan which are spoiled rotten while Adeline is treated terribly. Jun-ling struggles for her father's attention and affection. She comes top of her class every week, bringing home a badge or a certificate. It works but it also makes her siblings turn on her as she starts getting most of the very little attention that her father gave to the children from his first marriage. Adeline makes friends, but due to her parent's strict rules, cannot invite them over, or go over to their house. She is sent to many boarding schools around China, but she is never visited by her parents. When she lives at home, Aunt Baba, her beloved aunt, and Ye Ye, her grandfather, treat her kindly. However, she is separated from them by Niang. Eventually she is sent to live at a boarding school in Hong Kong, where she finds much happiness. Her friends become suspicious when no-one ever visits her or brings her gifts. She wears the same, small outfits. Adeline is very intelligent and enters a writing contest. Surprisingly to her, she won and gained her father's acknowledgment. At her desperate pleading, her father agreed to send her to college, but not for what she would like to do,writing,but for medical school instead. She does not really care, because it is a way out. The book ends here. In her real life, she is reunited with her brothers in London and eventually finds love and settles down and has two kids.
Critical Reception
Chinese Cinderella has been reviewed by Publishers Weekly as "...The author recreates moments of cruelty and victory so convincingly that readers will feel almost as if they're in the room with her. She never veers from a child's sensibility; the child in these pages rarely judges the actions of those around her, she's simply bent on surviving. Mah easily weaves details of her family's life alongside the traditions of China (e.g., her grandmother's bound feet) and the changes throughout the war years and subsequent Communist takeover. This memoir is hard to put down..."
Radio adaptation
In 2006 the book was adapted for BBC Radio 7. It was produced in ten episodes. The adaptation was done by Ivan Jones and broadcast on the Big Toe show.
