China Dolls by Lisa See
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was well researched and the time period was interesting, but the story itself fell flat for me. I never felt particularly invested in any of the three main shallow and superficial characters. In fact, I had a difficult time differentiating their voices.
Worst of all is the writing. . . no depth of emotion, no descriptions, just flat sentences. And many actions didn't make sense when considering the characters; many parts felt rushed and cobbled together in order to move the story forward, instead of being true to the characters' previous actions.
I enjoyed her other books but this one is a flop. I would not recommend this book to others.
The audio version is especially bad. . . an overdramatic narrator whose voice was irritating and who kept mixing up the different characters' verbal inflections and tones.

If you did/do read book be sure to go to her blog:
http://www.lisasee.com/insidechinadolls/ (sorry I can't get link to go to exact page, but url is correct...when you get to page click on the Quicklink in the black bottom, right side: "Step Inside the World of China Dolls")
She has posted several 1934-1946 ChopSuey Circuit photos,interviews & dance videos. IT is EXCELLENT.

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