Ms. Hen reviews A Free Life

Ms. Hen and her Shanghai mug

A Free Life

Ha Jin

Vintage International

2007

Ms. Hen happened to see this book at a used bookstore recently, and she decided to buy it because she had read another novel by this author, WAITING, and she loved it. It has been a while since she read that, but the emotions the novel constructed stayed with her. She learned A FREE LIFE is about Chinese immigrants, and Ms. Hen lives in a neighborhood where there are a lot, so she thought this novel would be appropriate to read.

This novel is about the Wu family, the husband Nan, his wife Pingping, and their son Taotao. Nan is a graduate student when Tianamen Square occurs, and he is forced to stay in the United States because China will not let him back. His wife comes to live with him in the Boston area, and later, his son, and they make their living in the country. Nan works at some security jobs until he gets an editorial job at a literary magazine in New York that he feels is more his calling. While working there, he works at a Chinese restaurant to make money, and he becomes friends with some influential writers.

Nan works at a Chinese restaurant in Boston after he leaves New York, and he and Pingping save money. They decide to buy a restaurant in Georgia because the cost of everything is much cheaper there. The family moves to Georgia and they work hard to make a living. They eventually buy a house next to a lake, but do not get a mortgage because they fear being in debt.

Though he makes a decent living at the restaurant, Nan yearns to be a poet. He keeps in contact with his friends from New York, and one moves to the Atlanta area, and comes to the restaurant to see him often. Nan doesn’t have time to write poetry because he is busy. He takes off work to spend with his friends, but he doesn’t like leaving Pingping alone to take care of the business.

This novel is over six hundred pages, but Ms. Hen dashed through it. She read it fast because she thought it was similar to looking into someone’s life, like she was peeking into her neighbors' windows, and finding out how they think. The Chinese people in this novel dwell in the real world, success is black and white, and success is making money in America. Nan is considered a success by his countrymen and friends in the United States because he is a successful business owner and a home owner, but he is not happy because he does not do what he loves. He thinks that his talent has been wasted by menial labor.

There are several twist and turns that occur in this novel, much like life. One thing happens and a person’s whole life can change. Ms. Hen could not stop reading this novel, but it’s quiet, like real life is quiet. Nothing drastic or overwhelming happened to the characters, they simply live as they are meant to live.

Ms. Hen loved this novel. She thinks it is appropriate to read during National Poetry Month because it’s about the desire to be a poet against all odds. People who have something to say can find their voice, no matter what attempts to hold them down. A poet can be a force that cannot be stopped, and a voice that screams cannot help but be heard.