I picked up this book at the library on a whim. I'm moving to Nanjing in the fall and wanted to learn more about the culture, city, and it's history. When I typed "Nanjing" into the library's catalogue, this was the first to pop up. I did no research on the novel or the author beforehand.

Jin does a wonderful job setting up the historical background of Nanjing Requiem and detailing the atrocities that the Chinese people faced at the hands of the Japanese, as well as the work done by Minnie Vautrin at Jinling College to help protect thousands of women and children. However, it felt as though Jin had difficulties turning a real event and story into a fictional story. There's a lot of being told what is happening in a very matter of fact way that made me feel removed from the story and events that were being described.

I enjoyed reading Nanjing Requiem because it really opened my eyes to historical events that I was previously unaware of, but it's not a novel I would recommend someone to read otherwise.