Slow boat to China

Author: Chen Danyan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-08-01
Features: Study abroad is no longer a distant concept for children today. Slow Boat to China is a story about study abroad told by Chen Danyan, imbued with the enduring charm of Shanghai as reflected in her signature prose. Watching the fictionalized details in the novel—more conflicting and intense than real life—often leaves one bewildered. Humans are actually quite fragile creatures, both physically and mentally. Sometimes a small crack, dismissed as insignificant, can burst like a dam. The girl named Fanny in Chen Danyan's story burst in a foreign land, her scattered spirit broken and irreparable. This was perhaps an unforeseen outcome of those days when she was so deeply drawn to life abroad. The novel, set against the backdrop of the decline of a prominent Shanghai family, weaves nostalgia with the harshness of contemporary life, telling a heart-wrenching tragedy through the fate of the girl Fanny. Fanny's ancestors amassed wealth as compradors, engaging in disgraceful trades like opium and human trafficking with foreigners. At their peak, they were the talk of Shanghai, but the sudden shift of the times led to the gradual decline of the family. Even in their plight, they maintained a semblance of dignity and arrogance befitting their status. Yet, with the inevitable passing of time, they placed their last hope on Fanny, going to great lengths to send her abroad. Fanny left the country with the family's expectation of reviving their fortunes, her heart proud and lonely as she pursued her American dream. Her academic journey in the U.S. was fraught with hardships, and a profound sense of emptiness led her into an unexpected love. Then, just as suddenly, she became pregnant. This accident shattered the sensitive and vulnerable heart beneath Fanny's proud exterior. She went mad—mad in a foreign land, mad under the unbearable burden placed upon her frail shoulders by the entire family, mad in the fleeting, weightless love that offered no resolution. Fanny's story ends, but the family's saga continues. Her sister, Jane, takes up the mission, traveling to the U.S. again. Years later, she achieves success. Her role is that of an agent for a multinational company in China. She seems to have effortlessly yet stubbornly revisited her family's ancient dream in the new era. As if in some twist of fate, there is a touch of joy, yet an undeniable sense of melancholy...