Message from ljacques

[Anonymous]

This is not a movie (as far as I know) but I recently listened to it on CD during a long drive and found it a wonderful story.

The book title is based on oracle bones that were found in a Chinese village. An archeologist dated them and found them to be very valuable to discovering more about the ancient culture in China. A reward was offered to anyone who could turn in a genuine oracle bone, or who knew where they were being dug up. The cave where they were found was a family secret of the Bone Setter, the village doctor. His daughter assisted him by grinding up the oracle bones to be used as medicine for his patients. The dilemma is whether or not the reveal the family secret.

The main character of the story is the granddaughter of the bone setter, who learns more about her past through letters she must translate (painstakingly, as she never was fluent in her mother's language) written by her mother. Her mother is suffering from the onset of Alzheimer's, and the daughter is forced to find a way to reconcile her desire to be an American women with her denied culture and her mother's needs. It is a wonderful book, and travels through 3 generations of the family before wrapping up in the present.

I would recommend this book to high school students.