Welcome to Litsy!

This was very engaging, I could hardly put it down. The author has created horrific living conditions in a near future China and it's interesting to watch our MCs navigate their society. All four of the main characters are truly interesting and I was hoping they'd be successful in creating a strong family. I'll put the reason this isn't a pick for me in a comment as a spoiler.

I'm not entirely sure what I think about this book. I found the story captivating and got through it quickly, but I found the characters and a number of the plot points difficult. I may have liked it better had I not been looking for some positive LGBTQ+ reading for the month. 3/5 #junereads #specfic

In this near future dystopian novel every China boy wants his #chinagirl, by 2030 China's one child policy and cultural preference for male heirs means 25% of the men in their late 30s will be unmarried resulting in a new policy of polyandry and three husbands now.
#underrated
#wanderingjune @Cinfhen @BarbaraBB
#30JuneBooks @howjessreads

An interesting article in the New York Times about feminist dystopian fiction
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/08/books/feminist-dystopian-fiction-margaret-atw...

What will the results of China‘s one child policy be on it‘s future? How will so many extra unmarriageable men find love and family? This book creates a future that is complicated and shows a rigid life under communism, but has well-developed characters that inject humor and personality. You can‘t help but become invested in them and their story. Extremely well done and very interesting to think about.

I wasn‘t expecting much from this dystopian novel, which has been compared to The Handmaid‘s Tale, set in near future China where there are 40 million more men than women. Females are valuable commodities, command huge dowries, and usually have more than one husband. Having saved for years for a dowry, 40-something Wei-guo seeks to become a 3rd husband in a seemingly happy family. Complications, including the “willfully sterile” (cont‘d below)

Fist leg of our trip is done! Only 3 more to go! 😂😂 I just started this book on the flight andI‘m only a few pages in but it already seems awesome!

I‘m not a great flyer so I‘m trying really hard to take deep breaths and not be nauseous! This trip has been 20 years in the making! #20thweddinganniversary #nokids #london #israel

Started the #ATBweekendreadathon early since I‘m away this weekend and I had a good amount of time Thursday to read. I finished this one and I am having trouble reviewing it. It kept me turning pages, that‘s for sure. I enjoyed it. I love, love, loved the concept, as well as her treatment of the characters, and her philosophical messages. Unfortunately the plot went a little off the rails in the 2nd half. 3.5/5

Stayed up late to finish this one! A really interesting novel imagining the effects of China‘s One Child policy and preference for sons. #speculativefiction

A science fiction thriller set in a future China where women are encouraged to marry multiple husbands. I enjoyed this a lot. Highly recommended. #litsyatoz2018

Just started this and so far it is really, really good!

Set in the near future, China‘s women are commodities as the result of the one child policy. Women can have up to three husbands, with each husband contracted to produce a child. Homosexuality is a problem, and those who are ‘Wilfully Sterile‘ are. It allowed to have families or produce children. This follows the story of a family looking to expand to take on a third husband. Will he be able to look after them and their secrets?

Please help!

Book Photo Contest: Post Photo of An Excess Male with short message to win $50 bookstore credit + one hour Skype book club discussion with me.

Contest rules here: http://maggieshenking.com/photo-contest/

This photo from Book Shop Santa Cruz is one of my favorites ever of my book. It is part of their Book Blind Date recommendations.

#kindledeal alert! I really enjoyed this futuristic tale in which China's one child policy has led to a huge disparity in gender ratio, and most women must take multiple husbands. If you like character-focused speculative fiction, this might be right up your alley.

@MaggieShenKing

Come talk to me about my novel, An Excess Male, the One Child Policy that inspired it, and my road to publishing. #reddit ama

It‘s our first snow of the year in DC! ❄️☃️

I‘m spending it inside reading, baking Christmas cookies, watching way too much Great British Baking Show, and drinking hot chocolate. I may have spiked it. 🍾🙊 #booksnbucks

In the not too distant future, China‘s 1 child policy, along with a preference for male children, has resulted in a significant population imbalance & there are 40 million unmarriageable men. Enter Wei-guo who has finally saved enough money to enter matchmaking talks to become a third husband. (Yep, women can have up to 3 husbands.) Family, love, computer hacking, war games, conspiracies...this book has it all. A good, thought-provoking read.

Having read three of the four MG/YA books I wanted to preview this weekend, I‘m going to take a break. Really intrigued by the cover blurb which describes this as “The Handmaid‘s Tale of a new generation.” Premise is quite promising—China‘s one child policy and a preference for boys has resulted in too many men. 40 million unmarriageable men to be exact. This is the story of one such man. I‘m anticipating a very interesting story.

Family book haul from today‘s visit to our local indy favorite. Now to make the pot of tea and get reading.

1. Madison, WI
2. I just started the tagged book last night, and I'm looking forward to more time in that world.
3. The southwestern veggie burrito I've got lined up for lunch.
4. The highlight of my week was seeing a baby barred owl outside my office yesterday.
5. Looking forward to reading in a bunch of different locations- work > the library > the park > who knows?

#readathon @DeweysReadathon

This is a drag. A year ago, I tore through Joe Hill's The Fireman in three days, only stopping when necessity demanded it. I picked up #SleepingBeauties eagerly anticipating a similar degree of breathless intensity, never expecting what a snooze (pun intended) I was in for. I'm almost halfway through, and I just can't get excited about this. I'm reluctantly putting it aside in favor of a different King, for now.

This was a great premise but slightly unevenly. China has an over abundance of men and not enough women. Told from multiple povs about a man who wishes to enter a family with two husbands, it also focuses on the consequences if one is gay or mentally ill. It also shows how families keep secrets and the lengths they will go to to keep the family intact. The book did digress a bit (dogs & toddler's bratty behavior) but the ending was engrossing.

Another lovely #libraryhaul. I need to get my holds list under control.

I might have to get this... It sounds really interesting.

Gahhh! I just got approved for these lovely #ARC books and can't wait to read them. They have been some of my most anticipated books for ages.