Touching Read-青色的围墙 by Xu Tian Bin & Xu Shu Qin

Hey all! Here's my first Chinese book I've ever posted on this blog! Guess I'm following in the footsteps of my sis & mum haha! Well, for the benefit of those non-Chinese readers, this book literally translates to "The Green Wall" & it's written by a Malaysian writer, with a novel woven within the story by his co-author & daughter.

It tells about a 15-year-old girl called Shan Shan & her father, Xu Tian Ping who's an author. Her mother passed away when she was 5 & now lives with her father & aunt. However, she & her father both can't understand each other. Shan Shan feels her dad scolds her before she can explain the situation & sometimes doesn't respect her privacy, not knocking before entering her room & checking her phone texts. As a result, she turns to her aunt, who is like a mother to her, to talk to & find comfort in. Tian Ping, on the other hand, wonders why his daughter is so cold towards him & though he tries to give her what he thinks is best for her, she turns him away repeatedly. In the end, will the father & daughter improve their relationship? Will they finally understand each other or stay distant? Read the book to find out!

After reading this, I could really relate to Shan Shan, a regular teenage girl like me. I'm sure all of us have felt our parents don't understand us at all & turn to other family members (ie: grandparents, cousins, siblings etc) or friends to confide in at some point in our lives. But have you ever wondered how your parents feel? The 2 point of views by the father & daughter in the book shows us both of their sides of the story so we have a balanced view of both parties. Plus, the novel (written by the author's daughter posing as a 15-year-old girl and aspiring writer) is like another story altogether so it's like reading 2 stories at once!

This is great for those parents struggling with coping with their teens & vice versa, for teens who feel a little misunderstood. All in all, it's a great book for adults & teens! Please share any comments if you have any & they'll be greatly appreciated. Thanks & watch out for more entries!

Lydia

PS: If you find these reviews of Chinese books we've done so far interesting, please tell us so we can find more to share with you all! Or tell us some of your own personal favourites! Oh & sorry for the lack of entries by my sis...will tell her to post something one of these days :)