The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

This novel explores the complex relationships between four Chinese-American mothers and their American-born daughters. The narrative switches between the perspectives of the eight women, revealing their pasts, their struggles with cultural identity, and the misunderstandings that have grown between the generations. The mothers, who all experienced hardship in their native China, want their daughters to have better lives and thus push them to excel in America. The daughters, in turn, struggle to reconcile their American surroundings with their Chinese heritage.

The 296th greatest book of all time

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Total Points: 1377

Since this book was first published in 1989, there is a penalty of 24.0%. The age adjusted score is 1046.52.

This is to prevent newer books from reaching super high on the ranked list of the greatest books of all time. The greatest books should also stand the test of time.