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Quote by Amy Tan

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The Kitchen God's Wife

This book delves into the experiences of a Chinese woman who has moved to the United States, examining her struggles with maintaining her cultural heritage while adapting to a new life. The narrative revolves around her relationships with her family, particularly her interactions with her husband and children, and the challenges she faces in balancing her traditional values with her new environment. more

Author

Amy Tan
Amy Tan

Amy Tan, born in February 19, 1952, is a renowned film writer from the United States. Her works are characterized by profound character portrayal and unique cultural background, with notable works including 'The Joy Luck Club'. more

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“My mother imparted her daily truths so she could help my older brothers and me rise above our circumstances. We lived in San Francisco's Chinatown. Like most of the other Chinese children who played in the back alleys of restaurants and curio shops, I didn't think we were poor. My bowl was always full, three five-course meals every day, beginning with a soup full of mysterious things I didn't want to know the names of.”

“I was raised the Chinese way: I was taught to desire nothing, to swallow other people's misery, to eat my own bitterness. And even though I taught my daughter the opposite, still she came out the same way! Maybe it is because she was born to me and she was born a girl. And I was born to my mother and I was born a girl. All of us are like stairs, one step after another, going up and down, but all going the same way.”

“She [my mother] said that if I listened to her, later I would know what she knew: where true words came from, always from up high, above everything else. And if I didn't listen to her, she said my ear would bend too easily to other people, all saying words that had no lasting meaning, because they came from the bottom of their hearts, where their own desires lived, a place where I could not belong.”