Flipping would not normally be the type of book I would go for, but an odd chain of circumstance presented it to my attention. The Literary Award motif also grabbed my attention.
Flipping is not your usual narrative with predictable occurences and outcomes. Nor is it awash with smart metaphors or similes. The writing style is so natural; deceptively simple and easy that I was hooked and able to finish the book in two long gulp.
There is a layered structure to the story that reveals the perennial cultural anxieties that exist between sons, daughters, mothers and fathers when they are grafted onto a dynamic multi-ethnic society that only the USA can produce. Eichin Chang-Lim cleverly exposes the irony of such a situation when JonSun marries SuAnn, thwarting her parents wrath....escaping to the USA only in later life to begin repeating the selfsame process with their own offspring.
I don't want to reveal to much of the story, only to say that Christa, the central figure, a world class gymnast who has been born profoundly deaf: deals with it, and as she approaches the climax of her career further health conditions threaten her.
The gentleness of the love story is indeed moving and I found myself thinking about the situation in between the reads....now that's a good sign EH?
Contained in the text is some very helpful sporting (gymnastic) terms and medical information relating to deafness and Christa's later condition. From this I can only surmise that the author has had a real hands-on experience with the conditions at large I have no hesitation in recommending FLIPPING to be your next read!
This novel will rip out your heart
By Diogenes
Like the author's Tough Scratches books, Flipping is about life's trials and the strength of the human spirit to overcome adversity. It is also about love in its many different forms. Ms. Chang-Lim's characters fight against family prejudice, social disadvantage and illness, but the message is ultimately upbeat and uplifting. The prose is sparse and unsentimental - but this only serves to heighten the emotions of certain passages. Sections of this novel will rip out your heart. Keep some tissues handy.
Great read - the colision of Perfection and Passion!
By Bob Boyd
Flipping is the tale of two families. And of their collisions between perfection and passion.
Family and culture demand perfection. To the parents, perfection meant just like them, rich professionals. However, two college students in Taiwan believe the passion of their love is perfection. Flipping is the collision of these different concepts of perfection, a conflict between yesterday and today. Flipping is the challenge of change—the lovers’ pursuit of freedom to live their own life.
Demands for perfection are everywhere. In the United States, Christa, a young child already displays extraordinary talent as a gymnast. Christa is diagnosed with a profound hearing loss. Her mother applies to have Christa tutored by an outstanding gymnastics coach only to find he demands physical perfection. The coach’s concept of perfection means Christa is not allowed to become his student because of her hearing loss. However, to her family, Christa’s passion to achieve her dream is perfection.
Flipping is the collision of the coach’s demand for perfection and Christa’s passion—the freedom, the thrill of flipping through the air. Flipping is the collision between the reality of Christa’s health and her dream. Flipping is the collision between fierce family loyalty and the rules of an athletic system—how can Christa be allowed to compete in gymnastics? After all, Christa cannot even hear the music during her the floor routine. Flipping is freedom. Flipping is the dream of flying through the air.
Flipping has the twists, irony, and surprises expected in a superb novel. One twist is the intersection of the lives of the two families.
The loving college students from Taiwan, once desperate for freedom from the demands of perfection, now live and work in the United States where they prosper flipping houses. Much has changed. The time has changed. Now is a generation after they, as passionate lovers, challenged the parents’ demand for perfection. Their lives have changed. They are now parents to a son, Wynson. But has their passion changed? Has their passion for freedom morphed into their own demand for perfection? Christa and her sister went to school with Wynson throughout their childhood. Will Flipping become a collision between the exquisite friendship of Wynson and Christa and newfound demands of perfection by Wynson’s parents?
Eichin Chang-Lim is an experienced and splendid author. Flipping is her third published novel. Eichin in Flipping describes real life with obstacles, love, and loyalty. Flipping may be fiction, but it is not fantasy. In a gentle way, almost without noticing, Eichin helps us learn about the culture of Taiwan. And about the causes and treatments for hearing loss. More important, in Flipping Eichin frames life from a fresh perspective. A perspective that allows and encourages each of us to draw our own conclusions.
For readers, Flipping is our story about our own search for meaning. Each of us battles between our passions and the expectations of others. As I read Flipping, I felt the emotions of my own battles. I also felt the pain and the triumphs of Christa and Wynson and their families. I did not put the book down. If you want to think and to feel, reading Flipping must be your priority.