The Funeral Cryer: Book summary and reviews of The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu

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Ruthiea

Different but Amazing
The writing in this debut novel is astonishingly beautiful. There are poetic sentences that amazed me with their power and insight. There are no wasted words in this book. There is humor, insight and memorable characters.

This book may initially turn off some readers because the writing is deceptively dry and understated and the subject matter SEEMS depressing. Power on as it is a story of empowerment and hidden strength, and that is the genius of the author and her story telling.

The Funeral Cryer is an unnamed woman whose job is to sing and cry at funerals in order to encourage mourners to express their grief. The job is essential and yet it carries the stigma of death and causes her to be ostracized in her small, drab impoverished village. No names are used in this novel, reinforcing her sense of alienation. Characters are identified by their role in her life. The Wife, our funeral crier, has a cell phone and a television, but every other aspect of her life is seemingly lived according to ancient customs. Her life is one of drudgery and hopelessness. She is subservient to her lazy, verbally abusive husband, and lives according to the whims of her mother, her distant brother, sister-in-law and her disappointing daughter. She is self-deprecating, tentative and introspective. Her existence seems to be to be in service to others. Her only solace are her visits to the barber, a newcomer who washes her hair and treats her as an adored equal.

It all seems miserable, and yet The Wife is a much more layered and complicated character. She evolves, and we see her become self-aware, a woman who has longings, desires, and finds her way to getting what she needs. There is a sly humor to this novel and this character. She is a woman who will no longer be a doormat, but she is clever enough to let them all think she is, all in order for her to live on her own terms. The ending is ambiguous, and yet I felt sure she was on her way to a much better future, one that she alone will determine.
This novel, these characters and the stunning writing will stay with me for a long time!

Borderlass

Mundane Moments Spun into Masterful Prose
As a frequent reader of all genres, I have seldom encountered a novel that has captured me so completely from the earliest pages. Mundane moments in the life of a self-employed "funeral cryer" - a Chinese middle-aged woman living in a contemporary village setting - are spun into a masterful tale by our debut author, Wenyan Lu. If this is amongst her first works of fiction, she'll have many fans like me lining up for subsequent efforts. Well done!!

Kathryn H. (Rochester, MI)

She tolerates her circumstances
I was first drawn to "The Funeral Cryer" by the title. I've been interested in the use of the "sin-eater" in Appalachian culture and wondered if the Chinese figure might be at all similar.

Wenyan Lu's "The Funeral Cryer" is the moving story of a woman who supports herself and her husband by singing and crying at funerals. The writing is spare but evocative and describes a bleak existence in a village in China. I didn't notice any dates in the book, but the nameless main character does use bus and taxi transportation when she goes to a neighboring city, as well as getting a ride on a moped.

Not only is the main character nameless; all the characters are nameless. Her husband is the husband. Her adult daughter is the daughter. A local married woman who associates with a number of men is called Hotpot.

Since some call the main character "Big Sister," I will as well. Big Sister's husband was fired from a job and has many excuses as to why he cannot get another job. She dutifully supports them both and tolerates being called stupid and ugly by her unemployed husband. He is quick to take the money she earns though!

Funeral cryers are thought to be cursed and to carry death around with them. The only person who treats Big Sister like a worthwhile person is the barber.

And that is the heart of the story. I recommend "The Funeral Cryer."

Thank you to BookBrowse and to NetGalley for the review copy of this book.

Carmela D. (Milford, CT)

Interesting
This is an interesting look at a somewhat unusual occupation. The unnamed narrator is a funeral cryer. She is paid by relatives to lament the loss of their loved one. She is provided personal information by the family to make the visitors feel how respected the deceased one was by the family. There are a lot of subplots in this focusing on the narrators relationship with her also unnamed emotionally and physically abusive (no one is given a name just identified by their role or what they like) overall I thought this was an interesting look at a totally foreign concept.

Celia P

Diary of Mid-life Chinese Woman
I was drawn to this book because I knew nothing of the culture of rural China, nor had I heard of a Funeral Cryer.

From the beginning as I read The Funeral Cryer it seemed as if I had picked-up the diary of a woman journaling her thoughts as therapy instead of speaking up for herself. This book delved into the cryer’s thoughts about every aspect of her life including her relationship with her husband, family and acquaintances in her village.

While I didn’t consider this a voracious read, I consciously found myself thinking about the Cryer, wondering what the plot was, and when the plot would reveal itself. So, I continued reading while wondering when the Cryer, or if the Cryer, would reach a breaking point and standup for herself in her relationships.

The cultures of rural China, especially as they relate to women, are revealed. The hardships of trying to better yourself and your family while living in a rural community under a communist regime are brought to the surface.

Yes I can say that reading this book was worth it, that all readers could learn something from this read and be encouraged to look into their relationships on all levels to see if they can improve their life by open discussion rather than keeping silent.

Kathleen Cohn

Quiet character study in rural china
Thanks to BookBrowse and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy of this book.

The Funeral Cryer is a quiet, contemplative character study of a woman in her forties living in rural China. She has been raised with traditional expectations of her life and is accepting of her not particularly happy life and the restrictions she places on herself.

She works as a funeral cryer which allows her to express strong emotions that she otherwise suppresses. This job brings in the only income for her immediate family, but the job comes with the stigma of being unlucky which alienates her from her neighbors. The story is told only from her point of view so the reader never really knows if her community feels she is unlucky or if she is projecting.

The details of her job, life in a rural community and the contrast with city life were interesting. She identifies the characters in her life by their role/job rather than names which adds to the universality. She has a sense of humor, ie: calling a character Hotpot after everyone's favorite dish. Her understanding of her daughter, husband and mother are insightful.

The reader sees her acknowledge and act on her own needs and other characters begin to give her respect as a person.

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