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From the Publisher:
Lily is haunted by memories-of who she once was, and of a person, long gone, who defined her existence. She has nothing but time now, as she recounts the tale of Snow Flower, and asks the gods for forgiveness.
In nineteenth-century China, when wives and daughters were foot-bound and lived in almost total seclusion, the women in one remote Hunan county developed their own secret code for communication: nu shu ("women's writing"). Some girls were paired with laotongs, "old sames," in emotional matches that lasted throughout their lives. They painted letters on fans, embroidered messages on handkerchiefs, and composed stories, thereby reaching out of their isolation to share their hopes, dreams, and accomplishments.

With the arrival of a silk fan on which Snow Flower has composed for Lily a poem of introduction in nu shu, their friendship is sealed and they become "old sames" at the tender age of seven. As the years pass, through famine and rebellion, they reflect upon their arranged marriages, loneliness, and the joys and tragedies of motherhood. The two find solace, developing a bond that keeps their spirits alive. But when a misunderstanding arises, their lifelong friendship suddenly threatens to tear apart.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is a brilliantly realistic journey back to an era of Chinese history that is as deeply moving as it is sorrowful. With the period detail and deep resonance of Memoirs of a Geisha, this lyrical and emotionally charged novel delves into one of the most mysterious of human relationships: female friendship.

I found this to be a beautiful novel. I've been wanting to read it for nearly a year. The prose sets a beautiful stage, even during the simplicity of the dwellings such as Lily's home. Yet it seems that China can be elegant even during the rural scenes, or at least I think so.

Lily isn't a perfect narrator so it is easy to feel sympathy for her when she feels the emotions that she does in the story.

One of the interesting aspects in this novel, at least to me, was the ritual of foot binding. I never really knew much about it before, but I assume that this novel was faithful in representing it to readers. All the descriptions regarding the pain and how difficult it was to walk during times later in life just makes one want to cringe.

How do other readers find this novel? Were there any scenes that you found to be especially poignant?

I was cringing during the passages dealing with the bones breaking during the binding. Going through such pain for fashion and marriage prospects...

There are so many sad scenes it would be hard for me to choose just one of them.

this book was soo good
i read it on a women's studies trip...my teacher recommended it
the torture of foot binding to get golden lillies, and how it depended the status of family you are wed into