"Amy Tan effortlessly mixes tenderness and bitter irony, Sorrow and Slicing Wit. The Joy Luck Club is A Fabulous concoction." In 1949 four Chinese women-drawn Together by The Shadow of Their past begin meeting in San Francisco to Play Mah Jong, invest in stocks, eat dim sum, and "Say" stories. Nearly Forty years later of the members has died, and her daughter has come to take her place, only to learn of her mother's lifelong wish and the tragic way in which it has come true. The revelation of this secret unleashes an urgent need among the women to reach back and remember. In this extraordinary first work of fiction, Amy Tan writes about what is lost-over the years, between generations, among friends-and what is saved.