By Amy Tan

Amy Tan was born in Oakland, California, in 1952.
Her parents, both Chinese immigrants, lived in
various towns in California before eventually
settling in Santa Clara. When Tan was in her early
teens, her father and one of her brothers each died
of a brain tumor within months of each other.
During this period, Tan learned that her mother
had been married before, in China. Tan’s mother
had divorced her first husband, who had been
abusive, and had fled China just before the
Communist takeover in 1949. She left behind three
daughters, whom she would not see again for nearly
forty years.
 (sparknotes.com)
 Tan’s
mother was suffering from a serious
illness, and Tan resolved to take a trip to
China with her mother if she recovered. In
1987, after her mother returned to health,
they traveled to China, where Tan’s mother
was reunited with her daughters and Tan
met her half-sisters. The trip provided Tan
with a fresh perspective on her mother, and
it served as the key inspiration for her first
book, The Joy Luck Club.
The Kitchen God’s Wife (1991)
The Hundred Secret Senses (1995)
The Bonesetter’s Daughter (2001)
Saving Fish from Drowning (2005)
Rules for Virgins (2011)
The Valley of Amazement (2013)
Founder of the Joy
Luck Club
 Flees China during
war and leaves
behind her twin
daughters
 Revives the club in
San Francisco, where
she is settled

Suyuan Woo
Takes her mother’s
place in the club
when she passes
away
 Wishes to travel to
China to be reunited
with her sisters

Jing-mei (June) Woo
A member of the Joy
Luck Club
 Fears she has become
too assimilated into
American culture
 Fears that she has
undermined her
daughter’s Chinese
identity

Lindo Jong
Successful attorney
 Skilled chess player
 Fears what her
mother will think of
her white fiancée
Rich

Waverly Jong
A member of the Joy
Luck Club
 Fears that she has
not taught important
life lessons to her
daughter
 Feels that she has
lost most of her faith
in God

An-Mei Hsu
Married a man
named Ted Jordan,
despite strong
protests from her
family
 Her marriage is
decomposing because
she does not know
how to assert herself

Rose Hsu
A member of the Joy
Luck Club
 Allows her American
husband Clifford to
articulate her
thoughts and feelings
 Fears that she has
passed her passivity
on to her daughter

Ying-ying St. Clair
Married to Harold
Livotny
 Has followed in her
mother’s footsteps in
regards to her
marriage

Lena St. Clair






Please choose one of the following questions to address in 13 paragraphs.
“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” Do children
eventually turn out like their parents? Why/why not?
Fate plays more of a role in our lives than does individual
will and determinism. Why/why not?
Parents are always proud of their children, even if they fail.
Why/why not?
Children do not always appreciate the value of their parents’
wisdom and advice. Can you think of any instances where
you did not value your own parent’s advice?
There are some experiences that we have at a young age
that affect the rest of our lives. Can you think of any
examples either in your own life or in the life of someone
close to you?