A Tiger's Heart: The Story of a Modern Chinese Woman

The Continuing Struggle for Women in China

Juanjuan Shen's inspiring autobiography brought me through to the end of a century of women's struggles to survive and achieve in China. Having survived a difficult childhood in rural China, Juanjuan manages to break free through her move to a large city, and finally to the United States. Her accounts of mistreatment, brutality, and how she had to challenge the government in order to find freedom are difficult to read, but compelling. Even at the cusp of the 21st century, women in China still faced many challenges in their quest for equality and respect. A very honest and poignant read that complemented books that I have read by other Chinese authors.

Shocking and a Great Read!

With brutal honesty and candor, Shen describes her rise from poverty and childhood abuse to the status of a self-assured and successful business woman in China. Interspersed with dark sense of humor and culturally insightful similes, The Tiger's Heart offers a rare glimpse into the realities of a young woman born into China's lowest class, but burning with determination to raise to the top. The author refrains from self-pity and candidly shares the difficult choices, not always 'proper' or 'moral' by the standards of those who never had to face similar adversity, that she took in order to survive and get ahead. What she doesn't realize, but what becomes apparent between the lines, is that her choices also required an immense measure of courage and perseverance. Shen's is an astonishing story of survival that simultaneously sheds light on a rarely seen face of China, that of rural illiteracy and poverty, corruption in business and male advantage. This is an unusual opportunity to dive into the soul of, if not a whole nation, then at least one large segment of a nation.

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