Sisters Pearl and May are modern and somewhat spoiled girls living in Shanghai in 1937. Working as "beautiful girls", they are hired by artists who paint their pictures for calendars and other advertisements. Although their parents don't approve of this work, Pearl and May are modern young women who enjoy the status and relative wealth these modeling jobs provide.
All this changes when the girls discover that their father has not only gambled away the family home and fortune, but their earned money as well. To get himself out of debt, their father has sold the girls as brides for two unknown men in America. In the background of all this, Japan has invaded China and is advancing on the city of Shanghai.
What results is a fascinating story of families torn apart, not just by circumstances but by lies as well. I thought Lisa See did a very good job making the past come to life with this book, just as she did in Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (I haven't read Peony in Love...yet). The conflict between the three generations is something everyone can relate too, as is the ignorance of youth. The culture shock the Chinese immigrants experienced in the novel really makes it clear how difficult it is to fit into a new (and sometimes hostile) society.
The one and only complaint I have about the book is that the story seems to go off the rails a bit at the very end. I almost felt like Ms.See wanted to end the book as abruptly and easily as possible, so she threw that in there. Fortunately, I found the rest of the book so charming and wonderful that the ending did not take away from my enjoyment of the book.
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