
The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane
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By:
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Lisa See
About this listen
2018 Audie Award Finalist for Fiction and Multi-Voiced Performance
The thrilling new novel from number-one New York Times best-selling author Lisa See explores the lives of a Chinese mother and her daughter who has been abandoned and adopted by an American couple.
Li-yan and her family align their lives around the seasons and the farming of tea. There is ritual and routine, and it has been ever thus for generations. Then one day a jeep appears at the village gate - the first automobile any of them have seen - and a stranger arrives.
In this remote Yunnan village, the stranger finds the rare tea he has been seeking and a reticent Akha people. In her biggest seller, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, See introduced the Yao people to her audience. Here she shares the customs of another Chinese ethnic minority, the Akha, whose world will soon change.
Li-yan, one of the few educated girls on her mountain, translates for the stranger and is among the first to reject the rules that have shaped her existence. When she has a baby outside of wedlock rather than stand by tradition, she wraps her daughter in a blanket, with a tea cake hidden in her swaddling, and abandons her in the nearest city.
After mother and daughter have gone their separate ways, Li-yan slowly emerges from the security and insularity of her village to encounter modern life while Haley grows up a privileged and well-loved California girl. Despite Haley's happy home life, she wonders about her origins, and Li-yan longs for her lost daughter. They both search for and find answers in the tea that has shaped their family's destiny for generations.
A powerful story about a family separated by circumstances, culture, and distance, The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane paints an unforgettable portrait of a little known region and its people and celebrates the bond that connects mothers and daughters.
©2017 Lisa See (P)2017 Simon & Schuster, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
Would you listen to The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane again? Why?
I would! There is so much content in the book that I'm quite sure I missed some finer points.What did you like best about this story?
I loved the history of tea. My only wish was that Lisa should have made actual "tea" recommendations to accompany each section in the book. It would have been so amazing to be drinking a tea while reading different sections of the book.Which scene was your favorite?
Too many to mention.If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
The real history of tea!Any additional comments?
This book lived up to my expectations. It is beautifully written, and I really cared for the characters. I was sad when I was done.Loved it!
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Best story this year
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Enchanting tale to be enjoyed with your favorite tea.
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A Beautiful Story
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Great listen
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I would love to see the tea ceremonies!
Absolutely Lovely
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Poignant Wonders
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Engrossing
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Excellent book!
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Amazing journey!
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