NEW YEAR

A father shares heartfelt reflections about his adult child in a distant land.

Told from a middle-aged man’s point of view, this illustrated book details the deep emotions and ambivalence of a father who is at once proud of his daughter’s achievements and independence, yet wistful over how quickly she has grown up and lives too far away to celebrate Spring Festival with him. From Beijing to Paris, visual vignettes carry a monologue that pivots between his reminiscences of her childhood and observations of her current life as a literary translator and a wife. On a macro level, this volume portrays a sliver of China’s modern reality in which individuals become global citizens as the result of their international educations and choices to remain abroad. As a work in translation, the text preserves traditional attitudes and biases in food cultures that ring true for the narrator’s positioning. His declarative conclusion to “make yourself a feast and enjoy it with Sylvain” signals the father’s reconciliation with their ongoing separation yet feels abrupt given how much he misses her “delicate, still childlike voice.” Readers might wonder how the otherwise nameless Daughter—or the adult female dining with her father—would respond to his self-absorbed musings. The lovely artwork features sketches and snapshots juxtaposed against plain backgrounds that accentuate the nostalgic spreads.

A sentimental holiday story told by a parent as he learns to let go.