Comments on: The Joy Luck Club

By: wmc

wmc — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:37:03 +0000

So beautiful. Thanks for sharing; am looking forward to exploring your site.

This was pretty much my parents’ response to Zhang Yimou’s The Road Home. I sat between them bawling my eyes out while they alternately glanced at their watches or yawned. I’m sure this would be their response to The Joy Luck Club if they ever saw it.

By: xiaozhen

xiaozhen — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:16:53 +0000

i don’t think the last paragraph is too hard on the writer. it’s hard, ironic, witty, and self-deprecating in a very vogue way. to top it off, it’s probably among most asian parents’ worst nightmares (then again, is that saying so much? i think there are a lot of asian parents’ worst nightmares). nice one. my only gripe is that it’s actually centered around the joy luck club. i guess it’s kind of funny to be so literal.

By: Cincinnati NAMjA

Cincinnati NAMjA — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 13:03:46 +0000

The funny thing is, though the movie was in English, I felt the same way about The Color Purple.

By: Niniane

Niniane — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 05:16:22 +0000

The line about “there would be no dramatic close-up with melancholy erhu music” is really poetic. You are a fantastic writer.

For what it’s worth, I think that the last paragraph is being too hard on yourself. Your sister’s mental state is a real tragedy, but you have produced moving stories that have affected a lot of people. I think your parents should be proud of you.

By: Marchukim

Marchukim — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 04:38:14 +0000

Oh, Calichef. Of course there aren’t! Silly, silly…

By: Jake of 8bitjoystick.com

Jake of 8bitjoystick.com — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 16:00:01 +0000

I could just imagine what your mom would say to the movie The Wedding Banquet.

By: Thomas David Baker

Thomas David Baker — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 12:48:17 +0000

I didn’t know about your sister and sorry to hear about that; but your parents are lucky to have such a smart and witty guy for a son. And as this is the age of Too Much Information we’ll say that the private-life-on-the-internet stuff is just you being “cutting edge”

Nice piece.

By: Calichef

Calichef — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 09:29:22 +0000

You ask your final question as if to say that there are no mental illnesses or gay people in Taiwan.