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Under the Hawthorn Tree
Under the Hawthorn Tree | Ai Mi
4 posts | 2 read | 4 to read
Yichang municipality, Hubei province, China, early 1970s. High-school student Jingqiu is one of many educated urban youth sent to the countryside to be "re-educated" under a dictate from Chairman Mao. Jing's father is a political prisoner somewhere in China, and her mother, a former teacher branded as a "capitalist," is now reduced to menial work to support Jing and her two younger siblings. When Jing arrives with a group at Xiping village in the Yangtze River's Three Gorges region, she meets geology student Jianxin, nicknamed "Old Three," who is the son of a high-ranking military officer, but whose mother committed suicide after being branded a "rightist." Despite their disparate social backgrounds and a political atmosphere that forbids the relationship, Jingqiu and Jianxin fall desperately in love. But their budding romance is cut short by fate... A sensitive and searing love story, Under the Hawthorn Tree is sure to become an instant classic.
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naeyma
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This broke my heart. Old Third. RIP 💕
By far the most beautiful romantic book I've ever read.
This story has a place in my heart.
I would read it over again 1000 times.

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xicanti
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This afternoon I planned to go on a BC Driving Adventure that'd include a jaunt past a far-flung Little Free Library I could put all these books in, but the car won't start. Near as I can tell, there's something wrong with the brakes.

I can get the bus to one of my intended destinations, but the LFL is right out. I'll have to hope I have time to walk to the closer one before I leave.

Lindy Yikes, brakes are important. Hope it isn‘t expensive to fix. 7y
xicanti @Lindy it's not my car, so I'm waiting for the owners to email me back as to whether I should call someone right away or wait until they get home on Friday. It's stressing me out. I only drove it the once and it was fine then, but it's an older car that's crisscrossed the country a few times so maybe it's just decided that's it. 7y
Lindy @xicanti Whew! Someone else‘s problem. Try not to worry. 7y
xicanti @Lindy I talked to my father and he thinks the immobilizer might've engaged, in which case it could disengage itself overnight. Hopefully that's all it is. 7y
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xicanti
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Pickpick

A fascinating look at 1970s China. I very much appreciated the chance to learn about a time and place I'm not super familiar with and I enjoyed considering Jingqiu as a character study that illuminates this period, but I never became as emotionally involved as I'd hoped to.

Be aware, too, that while this book is sometimes shelved in the romance section it does NOT meet the genre's standard requirements. Approach it as litfic.

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xicanti
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Today's plan:

-- rest up so I can finally kick this cold
-- try to sink into this book. I'm learning a lot from it, but I'm not yet emotionally invested and that's what I want in my novels.
-- cuddle Mr Gray #catsoflitsy