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Title details for A Map of Betrayal by Ha Jin - Available

A Map of Betrayal

by Ha Jin
Angela Lin
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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From the award-winning author of Waiting: a spare, haunting tale of espionage and conflicted loyalties that spans half a century in the entwined histories of two countries-China and the United States-and two families as it explores the complicated terrain of love and honor. When Lilian Shang, born and raised in America, discovers her father's diary after the death of her parents, she is shocked by the secrets it contains. She knew that her father, Gary, convicted decades ago of being a mole in the CIA, was the most important Chinese spy ever caught. But his diary-an astonishing chronicle of his journey from 1949 Shanghai to Okinawa to Langley, Virginia-reveals the pain and longing that his double life entailed. The trail leads Lilian to China, to her father's long-abandoned other family, whose existence she and her Irish American mother never suspected. As Lilian begins to fathom her father's dilemma-torn between loyalty to his motherland and the love he came to feel for his adopted country-she sees how his sense of duty distorted his life. But as she starts to understand that Gary, too, had been betrayed, she finds that it is up to her to prevent his tragedy from damaging yet another generation of her family.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    November 4, 2014

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781490636023
      • File size: 316116 KB
      • Duration: 10:58:34

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Regal and direct, Angela Lin's performance suits this audiobook's spare and simple style. The tale itself, however, offers the unexpected twists and revelations one might expect from a novel about a spy. Lin becomes protagonist Lilian Shang, whose father was a notorious agent for the CIA. When Lilian delves into her father's complex history, unexpected secrets come to light. Lin offers a steady pace and a consistent tone during narrative sections. She's at her best when she creates the dialogue of the many varied characters. In presenting distinct and honest voices that sound alive and realistic, both her voice and her interpretation of the text shine. L.B.F. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from August 25, 2014
      From the National Book Award– and PEN/Faulkner-winning author Jin (Waiting) comes a woman’s inquisition into the limits of her father’s loyalty to his nation and family. The narrative alternates between the present day and the years spanning 1949 to 1989. In the present, American-born Lillian Shang unravels her father Gary’s mysterious life as a U.S.-based Chinese spy feeding information to the Mao administration. She pieces together his evolution from student, to spy, then prisoner—he ultimately ended up being a high-profile mole caught by the CIA. Lillian undertakes her research primarily through Gary’s extensive diaries, bequeathed to Lillian by his longtime mistress. Gary’s story is too messy for journalistic prose alone, so Lillian travels to northeast China to connect with his other family. In doing so, she sees the pervasive duplicity that defined Gary’s life abroad; his family members know little about what’s happened to him since leaving decades before. When Lillian’s husband is embroiled in a dubious microchip scheme with a newly acquainted Chinese cousin, the FBI materializes and Lillian must evaluate whether to respond with familial fidelity or self-preservation. Jin’s subtle prose entrances; he divulges information measuredly, almost reluctantly. The result is a captivating tale that probes the Chinese political state over the past half century.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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