Four Treasures of the Sky

 Four Treasures of the Sky by Jenny Tinghui Zhang, 320 pages.

Daiyu always hated that she was named after a tragic heroine, and never wanted anything to do with her story. Unfortunately for her, tragedy sometimes comes anyways, and after her parents are arrested by the Qing government it comes for her quickly. Over the course of the next three years Daiyu picks up and drops identities quickly: the homeless boy Feng who learns calligraphy in exchange for cleaning the school, the prostitute Peony kidnapped and trafficked into a San Francisco brothel, and Jacob Li trying to make his way in Montana during a period of extreme anti-Chinese hate following the Chinese exclusion Act. 

To establish something important right away, this book is very sad. The whole thing is very rough to read. I was adding content warnings on one of the websites I use to track my reading and I think I used at least a dozen. That being said, it is a very interesting book. Four Treasures of the Sky focuses on a hugely unexamined, and important, part of the American West, as well as the history of immigration in America. I also found Daiyu herself very engaging and sympathetic, and she had an interesting perspective on all of the tragedies and atrocities she witnessed. So, if you're feeling prepared for a tragedy and have an interest in the American West or Chinese immigrant experiences, this book may well be worth your time.