Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

Set in 19^th Century rural China, this engaging novel by Lisa See covers the friendship between Lily and Snow Flower from the time they are children until old age. Lily and Snow Flower are introduced by a matchmaker in order to raise Lily up from her supposedly lower class family to help her attract a higher class husband. The girls learn to communicate by way of nu shu, a secret fan language used by women developed over 1,000 years ago.

The narrative is from Lily's point of view as she looks back on her life at 80 years old and covers the cultural aspects of China and women's place in the society. Foot binding, arranged marriages, and a women's inferior role are described in detail, and one feels for the heartbreaking and sometimes painful lives of these young women.

A wonderful historical novel, the story illustrates how women's friendships can be damaged by pride, bitterness and envy or revitalized by love and compassion.  Although set in a very different time and culture than ours, the principals and lessons in the story are just as applicable today.

It's a wonderful read, and highly recommended (4+ stars on Amazon). So sit back and enjoy Ms See's story, and you may even learn something new.