A wonderfully unexpected surprise....
I absolutely adored this book from start to finish and found it to be an unexpectedly terrific read. Ms. Furnivall truly captured the essence of what it must have been like living in the International Settllement in pre-revolutionary China...the sights, smells, dangers, characters, customs, etc were so impeccibly deteailed that it was impossible not to get swept up into the world of Lydia, the precocious Russian protagonist.
The culture-clashes and traditions of the various groups of people depicted in this novel- British, Russian and Chinese- are truly fascinating and there are plot twists and turns throughout the novel to keep it interesting. One of my favorite aspects of the book was the way in which the author didn't tell the reader every single piece of the story. Too often, I find writers in this genre feel the need to spell out every single detail, which doesn't allow the reader to interpret a scene or sitation for him/herself. This book was brilliantly written and would make a great book club choice...I highly recommend it!
