- Chinese Cinderella
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Chinese Cinderella: The Secret Story of an Unwanted Daughter 
1999 Puffin editionAuthor(s) Adeline Yen Mah Country China Language English, Chinese and Bangla Series Falling Leaves Genre(s) autobiographical novel Publisher delacourte press Publication date 543799665234 44 Published in
English1999 Media type Print (hardback, paperback) Pages 240 ISBN 0385227072 Preceded by Falling Leaves Followed by Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society Chinese Cinderella is an autobiography written by author Adeline Yen Mah which describes her experiences growing up in China during the Second World War. It was published in 1999 and is a revised version of part of her autobiography, Falling Leaves.
Contents
Plot
Adeline's family considered her bad luck and she was made to feel unwanted all her life. This is the story of her struggle for acceptance and how she overcame the odds to prove her worth. Born the fifth child to an affluent Chinese family Adeline's life begins tragically. Adeline's mother died two weeks after her birth due to complications bought on by the delivery, and in Chinese culture she is considered bad luck. This situation is compounded by her father's new marriage to a lady who has littleaffection for her husband's five children. She displayed overt antagonism and distrust towards all of the children, particularly Adeline, while favoring her own younger son and daughter born soon after the marriage. The book outlines Adeline's struggle to find a place where she feels she belongs. Denied love from her parents, she finds some solace in relationships with her grandfather Ye Ye,and her Aunt Baba, but they are taken from her. Adeline immerses herself in striving for academic achievement in the hope of winning favour, but also for its own rewards as she finds great pleasure wrong in words and scholarly success.[1] Adeline progresses through various situations in life, from boarding school to studies abroad.
This book is also known as Falling Leaves, and has been used as reading material in Austarlian Matriculation in KBU,Bandar Utama,Kuala Lumpur.
Life-changing moments
While at boarding school, Adeline is taken away by her chauffeur. She is told that her grandfather, Ye Ye has died. While at the funeral, Adeline openly weeps, while her stepmother and her father look on stony-faced. The rest of her siblings don't care and through the ceremony don't show any heartache to the loss of this family member who loved them so much.
While playing Monopoly with her friends at boarding school, Adeline is interrupted and taken home by her chauffeur. She meets her father in his room (the Holy of Holies), where he proceeds to tell Adeline the she has won first prize in the international play-writing competition. Adeline, thinking it was now or never, asks him if she could attend school in England with her brother. When asked what major, she says literature. But her father rejects her idea and orders her to go to medical school instead of literature and specialize in obstetrics. Adeline finally gets something she had been longing for, a chance to follow her dreams and to get away from Niang. She is able to go to college in England along with third brother.
References
2. http://penguin.com.au/PUFFIN/notes/pdf/0141304871.pdfso not true 3. a wonderful book, but it is biased towards Adeline who deicted the other family members as a evil character
External links
Categories:- 1990s novel stubs
- 1999 novels
- Autobiographical novels
- Children's novels
- Asian American novels
- Novels set in China
- Novels set in England
- Novels by Adeline Yen Mah
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