Have you ever considered what it would be like to live in a completely different historical period where your culture, environment, and way of living have all changed? In the novel Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, the reader is thrown into a rural province in 18th century China to experience the lives of two women as they grow up from young girls to mature and married women. It’s fascinating to read the book because it encourages your mind to imagine life in the past, where traditions in China, such as foot binding, in which young girls’ feet were bound and tied tightly to prevent any further growth of their feet, were widely accepted and practiced. Further, the main character, Lily, gives the reader an opportunity to learn the impact of historical Chinese practices on women, as she describes her life growing up in a peasant family, and how her admired small feet enabled her to marry a successful husband and ultimately secure a comfortable life.

Lily and her close friend Snow Flower share many experiences growing up such as foot binding and marriage. Their tight friendship over the years meets an unfortunate end when Lily falsely believes that Snow Flower has abandoned their friendship for another set of women. The suspense that Snow Flower and the Secret Fan creates for the reader, while providing a historical context and background in 18th century China, will surely interest a broad range of individuals.