River East, River West
By Aube Rey Lescure

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2024'Rey Lescure's prose is cinematic, compelling, perceptive and poignant'and The Guardian'I ... loved Aube Rey Lescure's River East, River West, which portrays western expats in Shanghai with both clear-eyed critique and compassion'and Rebecca F Kuang, author ofand YellowfaceA darkly glittering literary debut that traces a mixed family's troubled trajectory through developing China.-------------A mesmerising reversal of the east-west immigrant narrative set against China's economic boom,and River East, River Westand is a deeplyand moving exploration of race, identity and family, of capitalism's false promise and private dreams.and Shanghai, 2007:and feeling betrayed by her American mother's engagement to their rich landlord Lu Fang, fourteen-year-old Alva begins plotting her escape. But the exclusive American School - a potential ticket out - is not what she imagined.Qingdao, 1985:and newlywed Lu Fang works as a lowly shipping clerk. Though he aspires to a bright future, he is one of many casualties of harsh political reforms. Then China opens up to foreigners and capital, and Lu Fang meets aand woman who makes him question what he should settle for...-------------* PRAISE FORand RIVER EAST, RIVER WESTand * A novel about reinvention. It's original, it's funny, and it's sometimes heartbreaking as well'and Monica Ali, bestselling author ofand Love Marriage'An incredible novel that immediately absorbs you into the lives of a complicated mixed family during China's economic boom. Rey Lescure writes beautifully about the unfairness of who gets opportunities and who doesn't, the complexities of family life and the agony of living up to expectations'and Luan Goldie, author ofand Nightingale Point'A searing and intimate exploration of both China and the American Dream'Jean Kwok, bestselling author ofand Searching for Sylvie Lee'River East, River Westand portrays the powerlessness of our loves against the riptides of history'Garth Greenwell, author ofand Cleanness'Aube Rey Lescure's portrayal of the glitter and grit of China's tumultuous economic rise is by turns luminous and searing. A haunting debut'and Vanessa Hua, bestselling author ofand Forbidden City “River east, river west comes from a famous Chinese saying, which suggests that the world or people's destinies are always in constant change, and there is no fixed path of rise, fall, honour or disgrace. Aube Rey Lescure has represented this idea brilliantly in her novel'and Xinran, author ofand The Good Women of China A compelling and thought-provoking coming-of-age story about identity and the narratives we create about ourselves. River East, River West offers a vivid portrait of China and the uneasy relationships of class and family history'and Catherine Cho, author ofand Inferno: A Memoir of Motherhood and Madness'A complex and moving exploration of race, class, gender, and family... An ambitious, innovative take on both the immigrant and coming-of-age novel'and Kirkus Review River East, River West is a beautiful novel, wise and sensitive in dealing with the entanglements of love and culture across national boundaries, and across time; and despite its vast scope, it always feels intimate. A marvellous achievement'and Tash Aw, author ofand Five Star Billionaire