Genealogy Books - On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family

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Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating:

Summary: Engaging and educational...
Comment: Lisa See is one of those rare authors that can draw you into and keep you engaged in a story weaved
with historial significance as well as personal emotions. A must read for any first or second
generation immigrant who has always been curious about the lives and struggles of our ancestors who
first settled into this new "free" land called America.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Fascinating
Comment: This is a most interesting book. I am 75 years old and grew up in Los Angeles, visiting Chinatown
many times, and knew nothing of the people who lived there, so it was particularly interesting to
me. I have read other books by Lisa See and find her to be an excellent writer. I highly recommend
this book, especially to people interested in the history of California.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Skip this one but enjoy her others...
Comment: I absolutely loved two of Lisa See's other novels: "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" and "Dragon
Bones" and recommend both of them highly - she is an incredibly talented writer.

That
being said, I had very high hopes for this book but was disappointed. The one-hundred year odyssey
of her family is indeed fascinating and the amount of research she did is evident. The emotional
journey she must have encountered while writing the story is palpable. As with the above-mentioned
novels, you feel like you know her characters and get such a sense of their surroundings- the
sights, smells, and tastes of their lives. On the flip side, however, this novel was just too packed
with details. It felt like she tried to cram everything in. Certain chapters certainly could have
been cut out entirely from the story and it would have had the same meaning and effect.
/>It should have focused more on Fong See and his life as opposed to then focusing on his childrens'
lives and going on and on from there. His story is undeniably both interesting and troubling- it
depicts "American" prejudice, racism and the difficulties facing minorities in this country.
However, it would have been more poingnant if it stood alone as the focal point of the novel. />

Customer Rating:

Summary: Even After A Couple of Years, A Memorable Read
Comment: It has been a couple of years since I read this book, but it lives on in my memory as one of the
best I've ever read. I took up an interest in Chinese history several years ago, when starting the
process to adopt my first daughter from China. Now I read of nothing else. On Gold Mountain was an
interesting, entertaining and highly informative relative to the drivers and experience of the
Chinese as they came to and struggled to thrive in the United States. I've loaned this book to
friends who now also share my passion for Chinese history and have stashed it away for both my
daughters (both from China) to read when they are old enough. I've just also finished See's "Snow
Flower and the Secret Fan" (excellent) and am moving on to "Flower Net". And next year, when we are
in Southern California, I plan to visit the See's Chinese antiques business.

Customer Rating:

Summary: no title
Comment: What a glorious, fascinating, informative, wonderful book. I was entertained, and I learned, at the
same time. Just the kind of book I like. All about one Chinaman and his family in America - the
Chinese term being "on gold mountain". What a story! Very well written, never lost my interest.
What incredible, and often sad, lives these people led! And if Fong See had not had the guts to
marry a white woman, none of his empire would probably ever have been established. But he did, and
it was. Purveyor to Hollywood stars and movie sets, they moved in many circles. How truly
different the Chinese culture is. I had more a sense of its difference in this book than in any
other I've read about China, including Bao Lord's book. And they aren't all portrayed
sympathetically, either.

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