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A Map of Betrayal
A Map of Betrayal
A Map of Betrayal
Audiobook10 hours

A Map of Betrayal

Written by Ha Jin

Narrated by Angela Lin

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

3.5/5

()

About this audiobook

From the award-winning author of Waiting: a spare, haunting tale of espionage and conflicted loyalties that spans half a century in the entwined histories of two countries-China and the United States-and two families as it explores the complicated terrain of love and honor. When Lilian Shang, born and raised in America, discovers her father's diary after the death of her parents, she is shocked by the secrets it contains. She knew that her father, Gary, convicted decades ago of being a mole in the CIA, was the most important Chinese spy ever caught. But his diary-an astonishing chronicle of his journey from 1949 Shanghai to Okinawa to Langley, Virginia-reveals the pain and longing that his double life entailed. The trail leads Lilian to China, to her father's long-abandoned other family, whose existence she and her Irish American mother never suspected. As Lilian begins to fathom her father's dilemma-torn between loyalty to his motherland and the love he came to feel for his adopted country-she sees how his sense of duty distorted his life. But as she starts to understand that Gary, too, had been betrayed, she finds that it is up to her to prevent his tragedy from damaging yet another generation of her family.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateNov 4, 2014
ISBN9781490635446
A Map of Betrayal
Author

Ha Jin

Ha Jin left his native China in 1985 to attend Brandeis University. He is the author of two books of poetry; two collections of stories, Ocean of Words, which won the PEN/Hemingway Award in 1997, and Under the Red Flag, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction in 1996; and In the Pond, a novel. He lives near Atlanta, where he is a professor at Emory University.

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Reviews for A Map of Betrayal

Rating: 3.425287298850575 out of 5 stars
3.5/5

87 ratings19 reviews

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  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Disclaimer: This audiobook was provided by the publisher for review.It took a little while to get into this novel - the characters were complex but not instantly intriguing, and the plot moved slowly. But as the story developed, although the pace didn't pick up immensely, my investment in the story itself grew. The way the narrator switches between the voices of the two main characters is very well done and helps pull the story along. Although you know (or think you know) the end at the beginning, the characters themselves are compelling and the reader becomes invested in their wellbeing and the outcome of all the moving pieces. Very well done, with quite a bit of interesting historical timestamp.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Well-written, slow-moving novel of a Chinese spy working as a CIA translator. Told in alternating POV of Gary Shang, the spy, and his daughter, Lilian Shang, a history professor who has obtained his 6-volume diary, the story relates the agony of Gary Shang's life as he tries to reconcile his love of two countries and his responsibilities to two families.

    While it was a heartbreaking story, some of it seemed told in a detached way that robbed the novel of its potential emotional impact. Still, an author worth reading for his overall narrative skills.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    3.5 stars

    Lilian Shang, the American daughter of the highest-placed Chinese spy ever captured by the FBI decides to search for her father's first wife's family in China. Her late father's long-time mistress provides key knowledge--and his diaries--to her.

    In her search, she finds and learns more than she expected, as do the relatives she finds.

    A good read, I kept having to remind myself that this is fiction. However, I doubt I will remember this book in a year.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    On the whole, I did not enjoy this novel as much as some of Ha Jin's earlier works. Of course, I'm not a big fan of spy novels, so that part of the story fell a bit flat for me. While the characters' journeys to insight are interesting, the dialogue is somewhat stilted, and Jin moralizes a bit too heavy handedly. I might have liked it better in print than on audio. The reader's pacing was slow, and whenever she changed her voice to that of a Chinese-born character, I expected her to start with "Ah, so!" (like they always do in bad 1940s and '50s movies).
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Ha Jin has been an interesting author for many years and he is deserving of the praise and prizes that he has garnered. In “Map of Betrayal” he takes a road much different than previous novels and tells the story of a Chinese spy marooned inside the US after World War II. The narrator, Lillian Shang is the spy’s American daughter and her voice alternates with that of a 3rd person narrator to provide a very compelling story.“Gary” Shang was fortunate to learn a little English growing up in rural China, and it was enough to get him offered a temporary job working for the Americans in post-war Taiwan. He also comes to the attention of the new Communist government in China and they set him to be a spy, forcing him to abandon his family and take up a new, secret life in America. He is later discovered, put on trial by the Americans and sent to prison.Lillian Shang, after the discovery of her father’s hidden life, decides to find his family in rural China. Of course, she wants to know about this father that she only knew from his life and family in America. Bit by bit she learns of Gary’s early life and gradually meets and gets to know the family he left behind.At the same time the third person narrator provides an ongoing account of Gary’s life from the beginning, his marriage to girl in his home village and his almost immediate departure from that village for work. Ha Jin utilizes these two parallel tracks to tell a very compelling story of a man who is trapped and who sacrifices a great deal to serve his native country. Over time, as he settles into American life, gets married and has a child, he has to reckon with his growing affection for America and the conflict that creates within him.I’ve read reviews that criticize many aspects of the novel from the depiction of politics and the world of spying to how this man of many secrets is portrayed. My reaction to the novel, my great admiration for it, is based on the story itself. Gary Shang, like many of us, was forced to make decisions that he thought were in the best interests of his family. He paid a tremendously high price, leaving behind one family, lying every day to another and ultimately being imprisoned for spying on a country he came to love. Ha Jin portrays Gary’s agony and inner turmoil beautifully, and does as well with the character of his daughter, Lillian and many minor characters. This is a beautiful novel and deserves to take its place on the shelf alongside Ha Jin’s earlier works.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Map of Betrayal spans continents and generations. It's a fictional story of 20th century Chinese history and espionage. The book goes back and forth between a father's life and his daughter's discovery of his journey and legacy. It's clearly well-written and engrossing.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This contains the bones of what should be an absorbing story, but it is strangely drained of excitement, emotion or interest by a stilted writing style and broad exposition that makes it seem at times like moralizing non-fiction written by a high school student. I've never read any of his previous work, so I don't know if this is his usual style or if he adopted it for this work in an attempt to show the characters' distance. If it was a deliberate choice, it didn't work for me, unfortunately.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    In A MAP OF BETRAYAL, Ha Jin has created an unusual protagonist for a spy novel. Gary Shang is a very ordinary man, who seems quite dull and obedient. He does not have any compelling motivations facility to become a spy. Instead he just coasts into it after college based his need for a job. He succeeds primarily because of excellent English language skills and an ability to communicate well with others. But this is not a spy thriller. Instead it is an exploration of the conflict between loyalty to the mother country and loyalty to a new country that all immigrants must experience. In Gary’s case, this manifests as conflicts between feelings of love/loyalty and betrayal/guilt. He loves China but learns to admire America after spending most of his life there. In his job as a CIA translator, he betrays America but does not seem to feel much guilt about it. Gary is manipulated and betrayed by China by being misled about his family’s welfare and ultimately by not being support when he is exposed. Gary loves his Chinese wife but is forced to betray her and his family by being urged to start another family in America. He does not love his American wife, Nellie, and betrays her by keeping a Chinese mistress, but strangely exposes himself by obtaining money for her new business from the Chinese. Although he seems to have a fulfilling relationship with his Chinese mistress, he never marries her. He loves his American daughter, Lillian, but feels guilty about that because he has had no contact with his Chinese children. Ultimately he is estranged from both America and China and from his two families. His primary betrayal seems to be to himself.Jin uses a narrative structure that is split between Lillian, who relates her visit to present-day China in search of more understanding about her father’s Chinese family and Gary’s journals, which were given to Lillian by his Gary’s mistress. The latter provide an historical context of post-WWII Chinese-American relations from the unique perspective of an educated Chinese-American and as such are a strength of the story.This novel suffers from a few flaws. As an educated immigrant fluent in English, Gary’s experience in America is not typical, overlooking the more challenging adaptive process that most immigrants faced then and still face today. Racism is never presented, despite its prevalence in America; and his cultural adjustment appears seamless. Because Gary never asserts himself, he is not an easy character to admire. Jin’s tone regarding Gary seems confusing: Does having a low profile and being obedient represent how he perceives Chinese immigrants; or is he just being sympathetic toward a patriot who is being manipulated by China? The pacing of this novel is slow and Jin does not develop much suspense, resulting in a reading slog. Many of the characters seem manipulative and stereotypical, failing to elicit much empathy or, indeed, interest in their fates. When exposed, Gary’s defense was that his actions were an effort to avoid problems between the two countries. This seems naïve and disingenuous, but possibly consistent with his lack of any strong convictions.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Gary Shang was the most infamous and hated Chinese mole ever discovered deep within the CIA. When his American daughter, Lillian, has a sabbatical year in China, she is guided by the journals he left to pursue his story and the Chinese family hewas forced to abandon. What she finds is an ordinary man, moved by love for his native land in a time of chaos as the Communist government ousted the Nationalists. Gary gave up everything he loved to restart his life in America, which he also grows to love. In the end he is betrayed by both countries.Lillian discovers history repeating itself in the person of her young Chinese nephew. Will the ending inevitably be the same?I enjoy the humanity of Ha Jin's characters. In Ha Jin's novels, I usually learn a bit of Chinese history brought vividly to life, as well as a bit of the Chinese mind.Since I received an audiobook for review I'll say that I found the audio to be high quality and I quite enjoyed the reader, Angela Lin. I'll definitely continue reading Ha Jin's work
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    If this hadn’t been an early reviewers book, I probably would’ve given up on it. The dialogue and descriptions alternated between overly stilted and banal. I listened to the audio version narrated by Angela Lin and her narration was another aspect that grated on me. Her pacing was incredibly slow and the voice she used for the Chinese characters, to my ear, sounded like your stereotypical caricature. I have liked other works by Ha Jin, but I could barely recognize this book as being written by the same author. A missed opportunity considering the interesting subject matter.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I love audio books and this one was no exception. I have never been disappointed by Mr. Jin's writing and the production was very good.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I received the audio version of this novel through Early Reviewers. I have read and enjoyed other works by this author - in particular WAITING. I was disappointed in this novel. Going back and forth in time proved to make a rather boring story a bit more interesting. Strange to think that a novel about a Chinese man who becomes a spy for China living in the US and working as a translator could be boring, but it was. I never developed affection for Gary though I believe Ha Jin wanted the reader to sympathize with him. After all Gary left a wife and parents behind in rural China and never even met his twins when he went to work as a translator. Perhaps it was the sense of duty behind Gary's actions. I wanted to care that he was caught and spent his last days in prison. The reader is told this very early. But the writing was cool and dispassionate and though I saw Gary's conflict, I never fully engaged with him. This novel had much potential but just didn't live up.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is a first rate production of a flawed but interesting novel. Ha Jin is an indispensable novelist. But not in every one of his books. The story in this book is contrived. The conflicts seem manufactured. The motivations simplistic. People are not this simple. Yet Ha Jin succeeds despite the shortcomings of his own style. Maybe it is the authenticity of his settings, especially the parts in China. One great scene, which was perhaps the least important plot-wise, involved a modern day riot at a Chinese University over Internet censorship. A Map of Betrayal is also a doggedly optimistic book. If you want to feel good about the future of U.S.-China relations, then read this book. The production of the audiobook is outstanding. Angela Lin is able to breathe life into the myriad of characters in the book. She choose to go with strong accents. A bold choice that pays off. In all this is not a novel to cherish, but it is book worth a listen.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I listened to the audio version of A Map of Betrayal which I received through the Early Reviewers program. I found it very interesting on many levels: the immigrant experience, being a deep cover spy, being isolated from one's homeland, abandoning one's family against one's will, starting a 2nd family without revealing your history, learning about Chinese-American history and relations. I learned a lot about all these things and appreciated that. Unfortunately, I felt there were a lot of gaps that kept me from really understanding what made the major characters tick, and that left me somewhat unsatisfied by the end of the book. Despite that, I was glad to have read the book and be exposed to some interesting insights and history. I would recommend the book and think it would be a good selection for a book group to discuss.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A Map of Betrayal is a story about a man named Gary Shang, who worked for and sacrificed a good portion of his life for his motherland, Communist China. After having worked as a translator and then securing a position at the CIA, he left China and became a mole for his country for 30 odd years. In all of that time, he was never permitted to contact his family in China, including his young bride and the twins she bore after he left. He eventually started a new family in the United States, but his loneliness and sense of not belonging never left him. This is a story of espionage, but it is not a riveting thriller. It is more a quiet contemplation of patriotism and loyalty. The story alternates between present day narration by Gary's daughter Lillian, many years after his death, and the years of Gary's work for China, with historical detail that was quite interesting. I didn't like this book as much as Ha Jin's Waiting, however. The characters were often very two dimensional and unrealistic. This was especially so of Nellie, Gary's American wife. She was portrayed as a woman who spent the first years of their marriage watching situation comedies on TV all day, to the point of neglecting their child. When Lillian became an adult, earned her PHD and published a book her mother showed no pride or approval. Yet this same mother read every book her daughter did during her school years and sat with her doing homework every night. The pieces don't fit together. Lillian's husband Henry was equally hard to figure out. I did find Gary to be a sympathetic character that I could empathize with.I listened to the audio version of this novel, narrated by Angela Lin.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I listened to this on audiobook. it could have used some serious editing. The basic storyline about Gary, the spy would have been a great story, but it got so watered down by minor storylines. The present day plot was not interesting or compelling, especially the nephew. I enjoyed the historical details, but the dialogue was just not well written.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    What has turned out to be a timely read. Going to work this morning I heard that the US postal service has been hacked and that the hackers were possibly located in China. This is a novel about a man, who was a Chinese spy for decades.Starting from 1949 Gary was hired as a translator forma US company, eventually ending up in the United States working for Mao and the Chinese government. Leaving his young wife in China, he was never able to return, and eventually, encouraged by his handler, to start a new family in the US. It is his American daughter Lilian, given his journals by his mistress, who sets out to track his family in China.In very subtle, understated prose this is about a man, conflicted between the love of his home country and his growing love for the United States. Conflicted also between the guilt he feels for leaving his family in China and the love he feels for his life and for his daughter in the US. It covers an amazing amount of history, from the Cuban missile crisis to the assassination of President Kennedy. China and Russia's collusion and China becoming a nuclear power. Their break from Russia and the growing hostilities that ensued. What he is told from his handlers about the starving masses in China, caused by the Great Leap forward. As Ha Jin is now writing in the US, leaving China after that governments actions at Tiananmen Square, this book was written with a great deal of knowledge and authority. A very good story about a man who convinced himself he was doing the best thing for both his countries.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I was really looking forward to reading this book. It started out ok. Then I kept reading and was not getting intrigued as much as I had hoped. In fact, I can not remember much of what I did read up until the point that I put the book down. I thought it was just me and I was not in the right mood for this book so I walked away from it for a while. I came back to it and tried it again. Nope it was not really me. It was the book. While I did see promise in it. The book just felt stiff. It does not have a lot of moving, action parts. Which I would expect from a spy story. The author more just was writing a story about the history of China. Which was fascinating but to a point. Plus, neither past or present was exciting. None of the characters were memorable.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I was very excited to read this book and actually voted to include it in our Holiday Catalog. But after finishing it, I have to say I was so disappointed that I took my nomination away. The story is about a Chinese man, Gary Shang, who grows up in China during WWII. He becomes a spy for the Chinese government and takes a job as a translator for the CIA. He lives a dual life, with a wife in China and his American family in the US, and for decades, he passes secrets to the Chinese government. The novel is trying to depict the inner conflict he feels between his loyalty to his mother country and the admiration to his new home. There were several things that bothered me about this book. First, I did not find Gary Shang to be a sympathetic character. Rather than feeling guilt about his betrayal of the US, his primary concerns were about self preservation. He showed no loyalty or faithfulness to his American wife, keeping a mistress through most of his life, so it seems odd to think that he would be torn up about loyalties to 2 countries. But my biggest gripe about this book was its portrayal of the immigrant experience in America. Gary Shang came to the US in the 1950’s right after WWII. He has no problems integrating into American society or finding an American wife. That completely does not ring true. My parents emigrated from China to the US post WWII and they did experience quite a bit of racism and bigotry. The US had just finished a war with the Japanese and were understandably wary of Asians. Jhumpa Lahiri’s books do a wonderful job depicting that difficult immersion into another society. Ha Jin makes it seem like a walk in the park. And the other subtle point that bothered me was similarly how his daughter who is half Chinese and half Caucasian is able to pass herself off as completely Chinese while traveling in China. Having 2 Eurasian children and knowing dozens more, I can’t think of a single example where a Eurasian would be mistaken for a Chinese person. Not to mention that even ABCs (American Born Chinese) can’t pass themselves off as native Chinese. Our dress, our mannerisms, the way we walk and talk, etc. make us stand out.I’m sure this book will appeal to some – but definitely not my cup of Jasmine tea!