Letters in the Jade Dragon Box

Letters in the Jade Dragon Box
by Gale Sears
Deseret Book, 2011. 296 pgs. Historical Fiction

Wen-Shan has been living with her great uncle Zhao in Hong Kong for ten years, but remembers nothing of her first five years living inside communist China. Zhao refuses to discuss the past with Wen-Shan, including the mother she can’t remember. One day shortly after Chairman Mao’s death in 1975, Wen-Shan and her uncle receive a priceless gift from Chin: a box containing letters and other family heirlooms. The items in the jade dragon box help Wen-Shan and her uncle connect with each other and their past.

I thought this was a well-written, absorbing read about relatively recent Chinese history. I loved seeing how the letters helped Wen-Shan open up and connect with those around her and I thought the characters and setting were all vividly described. However, after recently reading several other books about communist China, I felt like this one was a little lightweight. It’s a good book, but definitely not epic historical fiction. This is written by an LDS author and she incorporates some elements of LDS history in Hong Kong, but they are presented in a way that feels natural within the context of the story.

JC