The Many Daughters of Afong Moy

by Jamie Ford

[Quirky Cat]

Wow. There was no way I could read the description of The Many Daughters of Afong Moy and successfully walk away. This is one of those books that demands to be read, you know?

Dorothy Moy is an artist who uses her personal trauma and mental health condition to fuel her art. It's not ideal, but Dorothy has accepted her lot in life. That is until she noticed her daughter exhibiting very similar behavior. That's when Dorothy realized something had to change.

Dorothy signs up for an experimental treatment option to give her daughter a better future. If successful, it will eliminate any inherited trauma, ensuring that her daughter will not have the save ghosts lingering over her shoulder.

“Dorothy remembered an old line of poetry from Rupi Kaur: If people were rain, men would be drizzle, and women a hurricane.”

I've seen several novels portraying generational trauma. However, The Many Daughters of Afong Moy marks the first (that I've seen) that combines it with heavy science fiction elements. It was a pleasant surprise, to say the least!

There are five main perspectives in The Many Daughters of Afong Moy, though it'll probably take a minute for the number to become clear. These perspectives jump around quite a lot, covering different generations and their stories.

However, it always felt like Dorothy was the primary perspective, which I'm sure was the intent. She's the one delving into the past to try and save her daughter's future, so she plays the biggest role out of everyone.

I'll confess that it took me a while to piece together all the perspectives and how their stories fit together. Some people may enjoy putting that puzzle together. Others may find it off-putting. I think that I was somewhere in between, not loving it but certainly not hating it.

Overall I would have to say that The Many Daughters of Afong Moy is a solid reading. The writing style is by far the best part, though certain characters found a way to shine as I read, which I always appreciate.

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