Song is the the mother of eleven year old River living in Harbin in Northeast China, and as a her husband died, she works at different jobs to make ends meet; she sells food at a food stand, cleans houses and is a delivery worker. Her son River is a true wonderchild; he could play his favorite song on the piano at just four years old. At ten year old, he could play a set of etudes by Chopin after he could play Liszt's Liebestraume two years earlier. Because of his exceptional talent, he is invited to study with a prestigious piano teacher in Beijing. But at the busy train station of Beijing, Song and River lose each other after Song loses grip of his little hand in the crowds that are in the station passing because of the Chinese new year celebrations.
They are unable to find eachother, as River doesn't have a cellphone. They both make multiple unsuccesfull attempts to find each other back. They wont find each other back for the next seven years, and we follow the time inbetween when they try to continue living without eachother, always in search of eachother, and how they pick up live in a city unknown to them with the new people they meet along the way. They face challenges, health issues, the COVID pandemic, study and work, and they always keep hope of finding each other in a huge city. Will they find each other back in the end?
Little Wonder is a very entertaining and also moving new novel. I found the writing style very gripping and it kept me interested to find out if Song and River would ever find each other back. I loved how the author portrayed both characters they felt where realistic and believable, and you just felt their desperation that they lost each other and their hope to find each other back. How the author portrayed China as a background in the story also was so realistic, I could just imagine Song in the busy streets of Beijing delivering food and driving to the city on her scooter, which was just very well done. But the author also potrayed the poverty in rural cities in Harbin very realistic River truly has to build op a new life with the help of strangers and will Song even recognize him as he now is seven years older?
Little Wonder by Sophie Chen Keller is truly a beautiful and gripping new novel, I truly enjoyed reading it an recommend it!
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