Early warning! “Do Not Say We Have Nothing” is a fascinating and lengthy book, so you might want to get started sooner rather than later on your reading. The book tells the story of three musicians and their families in China, before, during and after the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Readers will encounter historical context, stories of personal survival strategies, and potential sources of hope in times of suffering and disorientation. The novel was published in 2016 and is available in both hardcover and paperback.
Author Madeleine Thien was born in Vancouver and is the first in her family to be a native English speaker. She now lives in Montreal. “Do Not Say We Have Nothing” won the Scotiabank Giller Prize, widely considered the most prestigious in Canadian literature, the Governor-General’s Literary Award and was also a finalist for the Man Booker Prize. This book will be the first of three novels to be discussed at RHUMC between now and next spring under the theme of “Doors Between Worlds.” April Herron will facilitate our conversation.
