Scan barcode
A review by sanmeow
Half a Lifelong Romance by Eileen Chang
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.75
half a lifelong romance is a book about shijun and manzhen, two colleagues living in shanghai, and their attempts at staying together. shijun's family has matched him with someone else for marriage despite his unwillingness to follow through with it. shijun and manzhen become distant and they have their own struggles, but they both hope to one day reunite and love again.
this novel explores the impacts of decisions, both our own and ones that our family makes for us. it explores how one's emotions and family members influence them. it also gives us characters that are interesting to discover because of their attitude toward life - they feel like their lives are uneventful and sort of pointless. they're all highly emotional and they let their feelings make decisions for them, and they miss out on things because of them sometimes.
the author also gives insight into how women are treated in society. she does that through manzhen, the character which i liked most because she felt most important to me. she's often swayed by how people treat her and the trauma she's endured just because she's a woman.
the way the author talks about love is breathtaking to me, especially because books that discuss love deeply are some of my favorites. the writing style was absolutely enchanting. the descriptions were perfectly done and really set the tone and atmosphere of this novel. i highlighted so many quotes while reading this, most of them being about love, and it made me tear up several times.
this novel explores the impacts of decisions, both our own and ones that our family makes for us. it explores how one's emotions and family members influence them. it also gives us characters that are interesting to discover because of their attitude toward life - they feel like their lives are uneventful and sort of pointless. they're all highly emotional and they let their feelings make decisions for them, and they miss out on things because of them sometimes.
the author also gives insight into how women are treated in society. she does that through manzhen, the character which i liked most because she felt most important to me. she's often swayed by how people treat her and the trauma she's endured just because she's a woman.
the way the author talks about love is breathtaking to me, especially because books that discuss love deeply are some of my favorites. the writing style was absolutely enchanting. the descriptions were perfectly done and really set the tone and atmosphere of this novel. i highlighted so many quotes while reading this, most of them being about love, and it made me tear up several times.