📖: Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club (1989)
🍸: good intentions
Why this book?
Here’s the first of a line-up of pairings for book-to-film adaptations I love.
Amy Tan’s novel about four Chinese mothers and their Chinese American daughters feels so close to home. Although I am not an Own Voices reader, I am an American daughter of an Asian immigrant mother, so the hopes, fears, and challenges of these characters mirror how my mom and I felt growing up. One thing I especially loved about the novel is its exploration of who the mothers were before they became mothers, and the secrets and intentions they carried with them to America. It humanizes and complicates the way that I see my own mom.
I first came across Amy Tan’s book through a high school English class, and it was the first time I could see my own story reflected in literature. Shortly afterwards, I found a copy of the film at my local Blockbuster’s. (omg remember movie rentals?! 😂)
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched this film when I was younger. I think that goes to say how much I craved seeing other Asian American families like mine represented on screen. Twenty-five years passed between the release of this film and the next all-Asian casted movie, Crazy Rich Asians. Recently, I’ve been excited to see new films made for us and by us gain widespread attention and recognition – like The Farewell, Minari, and No Crying at the Dinner Table – and am hopeful that we won’t need to wait years for the next one.
Why this drink?
This recipe calls for Chinese oolong tea, and with grapefruit, the tea and citrus complement each other beautifully, just like the mothers and daughters in this novel.
good intentions
ingredients:
1.5 oz oolong tea infused vodka
1.5 oz grapefruit juice
2 tsp honey syrup
1 tsp lemon juice
garnish:
grapefruit slice
- Infuse vodka with oolong tea for 10 minutes.
- To make the honey syrup, heat 2 parts honey with 1 part water over a stovetop to make the syrup.
- Once the syrup cools, combine all ingredients in a shaker with ice, and shake well.
- Strain the drink over fresh crushed ice and garnish with grapefruit
Another round, please! 🥂
You might also like:
Maxine Hong Kingston’s The Woman Warrior (1976)
Let’s discuss!
Finished the book? What did you think about it? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
mixaphoria.com 