The Library of Legends by Janie Chang Review

 Title: The Library of Legends 

Author: Janie Chang 

Age Group: Adult

Genre: Historical Fiction/Fantasy 

Series: Standalone 

Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars 

This book was my Book of the Month selection for April 2020. 

This was the first book I’ve ever read by Janie Chang, and it definitely won’t be my last. The Library of Legends shines a spotlight on one of the lesser-known periods in Chinese history, the Second Chinese-Sino War. Nanking, China, 1937. Lian Hu is a student at the prestigious Minghua University, but the war has separated her from her mother. Forced to walk all the way to Shanghai to reunite with her only living family member, Lian and her classmates are assigned an important task: to read and protect the university’s precious Library of Legends. But with Japanese air bombings, the Nationalist Communist Party looming in the ranks, the journey is anything but easy. Lian soon discovers that the legends she’s been reading about may, in fact, be more real than she could’ve ever imagined... 

I really enjoyed this book! I love historical fiction because it can teach you new things about the world, albeit through a fictional lens. I had no idea about this period in Chinese history, and this book was informative as well as entertaining. The pacing was breakneck, and I was immediately spellbound by the third-person narration that switched between Lian, Sparrow, Shao, and Professor Kang. The wartime aspects were brutal, at times even gory, and at times I worried that Lian would not reach her destination. But my absolute favorite parts of the novel were the quest and fantastic elements. I loved reading about the gods, however minor they were. I would say that this book straddles the line between historical fiction and magical realism. This novel was beautiful, even with the wartime parts of it. This book might one of my favorites that I’ve read this year. Janie Chang knows how to write beautifully, as well as tell a compelling story, and I won’t soon forget Lian, Sparrow, Shao, Professor Kang and Dr. Mao. The bottom line: Rich with history and more than a little bit of magic, I loved The Library of Legends! Next on deck: Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo, The God Game by Danny Tobey, Love and Other Disasters by Anita Kelly, and The Hunting Party by Lisa Foley!