The Many Daughters of Afong Moy

June 20, 2022
Ford (Hotel at the Corner of Bitter and Sweet) explores in his intriguing if melodramatic latest the connections between seven generations of women, beginning with the historical Afong Moy, noted as the first Chinese woman to immigrate to the United States. In 2045, in a storm-besieged Seattle, Afong’s descendant Dorothy is having hallucinations from the points of view of women from the past. Dorothy seeks help from a Native American practitioner of the experimental “science” of epigenetics, which posits that it’s possible to inherit memories. The novel weaves scenes from the lives of other Moys—including a nurse in China in WWII, a student at the radical Summerhill boarding school in Great Britain, a young woman crossing the Pacific, and more—with scenes of Dorothy’s increasingly frantic attempts to hold onto some sort of sanity as a monsoon hits Seattle and her mind shifts between the present and the distant past. Ford sometimes bogs this down with explanations of epigenetics, and some might roll their eyes at the pat ending, but the individual accounts of the women in the family can be gripping. There’s some good storytelling here, but this doesn’t quite stand out amid an increasingly full shelf of multigenerational climate epics. Agent: Kirstin Nelson; Nelson Literary Agency.

March 1, 2023

Ford's (Love and Other Consolation Prizes) latest traces the ways in which the genetic inheritance of trauma reverberates throughout seven generations of Chinese women. The book begins with Dorothy Moy, who lives in 2045 San Francisco. Dorothy is plagued by depression and haunted by memories that are not her own. When Dorothy's daughter, Annabel, begins to experience similar visions, Dorothy engages in experimental epigenetic therapy, exploring techniques that allow her to capture and manipulate memories inherited from her forbears. Each chapter focuses on one of Dorothy's women ancestors, starting with Afong Moy, who was horribly abused when she traveled as a sideshow curiosity in the 1830s. Afong's suffering was passed down through generations of women, where a single fatal decision, guided by the women's collective ordeals, causes each pain and despair. A host of talented narrators--Ford himself, joined by Jennifer Lim, Cindy Kay, Mirai, Natalie Naudus, Sura Siu, Emily Woo Zeller, and Nancy Wu--honor the women's stories with unique voices, creating compelling scenarios for each. VERDICT Ford's many fans will be delighted by this spellbinding psychological saga. Perfect for listeners who enjoy the works of Isabel Allende and Lisa See.--Joanna M. Burkhardt

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