The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane cover art

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

By: Lisa See
Narrated by: full cast
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £27.99

Buy Now for £27.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

A thrilling new novel exploring the lives of a Chinese mother and her daughter who has been adopted by an American couple.

Li-yan and her family align their lives around the seasons and the farming of tea. There is ritual and routine, and it has been ever thus for generations. Then one day a jeep appears at the village gate - the first automobile any of them have seen - and a stranger arrives. In this remote Yunnan village, the stranger finds the rare tea he has been seeking and a reticent Akha people.

Li-yan, one of the few educated girls on her mountain, translates for the stranger and is among the first to reject the rules that have shaped her existence. When she has a baby outside of wedlock, rather than stand by tradition she wraps her daughter in a blanket, with a tea cake hidden in her swaddling, and abandons her in the nearest city. After mother and daughter have gone their separate ways, Li-yan slowly emerges from the security and insularity of her village to encounter modern life while Haley grows up a privileged and well-loved California girl. Despite Haley's happy home life, she wonders about her origins, and Li-yan longs for her lost daughter. They both search for and find answers in the tea that has shaped their family's destiny for generations.

In her biggest seller, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, See introduced the Yao people to her readers. Here she shares the customs of another Chinese ethnic minority, the Akha, whose world will soon change. A powerful story about a family separated by circumstances, culture, and distance, The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane paints an unforgettable portrait of a little known region and its people and celebrates the bond that connects mothers and daughters.

©2017 Lisa See (P)2017 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd
Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction United States Adoption Heartfelt Inspiring Thought-Provoking Stranger Village
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Midnight at Malabar House cover art
The Color of Our Sky cover art
Old Land, New Tales cover art
The Poisonwood Bible cover art
The Complete Jaipur Trilogy cover art
The Bite of the Mango cover art
The Covenant of Water cover art
The Diplomat's Daughter cover art
The Brightest Sun cover art
The Hundred Secret Senses cover art
Somewhere in Between cover art
Three Daughters cover art
The Rent Collector cover art
A Well-Tempered Heart cover art
America's First Daughter cover art
Orphan Train: A Novel cover art

What listeners say about The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    198
  • 4 Stars
    55
  • 3 Stars
    7
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    185
  • 4 Stars
    38
  • 3 Stars
    10
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    172
  • 4 Stars
    53
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

When is the sequel?

I didn't take to this book at first , not sure why. I persevered and it soon became a book I had to listen to at every opportunity.
I both love and dislike the ending as I want more of the story.
This is an interesting, heartfelt, frustrating annoying but enjoyable book. It has left me wanting to research things she wrote about. I'm glad I finished it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Ethnic Chinese & tea

Such an interesting book about different Chinese cultures & their tea - for which I have a new found respect . I really enjoyed this book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Interesting

Interesting book, learned a lot about China and its Ethnic Arka people. However the 2nd half if the book was disappointingly unrealistic so let the story down.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved this. Didn’t want it to end

Fascinating story of a young girl in China through to her middle age. References many significant world events in that region. Very well narrated. And I learned a lot about tea!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

fantastic book

Apart from the fab story, you learn so much about history and culture. such vivid writing. Beautifully read. Lisa See is my new fave author

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful and surprising

Fascinating story of China we know little about. Great read that is hard to put away. Highly recommended for those who are interested in Chinese culture, traditions and realities.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it

It made me look into the Akha people online too. Fascinating and absorbing. If there has to be one tiny flaw it’s the voice of Hayley which I found hard to listen to but that’s probably just me and it didn’t deter from my enjoyment overall. As well as learning about Chinese history, I liked the insights into the thinking of young adopted girls and their parents. The world can be so cruel but this tale was uplifting and insightful at the same time. I shall look for more books by this author.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very interesting and enticing story

Both the story and the narrator's were very good! The book follows the physical and emotional journey of a girl born in a remote mountain village in China, her life in the village with ancient traditions and beliefs and, later on, her encounters with the rest of China and the western world. Meanwhile, the reader periodically follows the story of the illegitimate child the main character had to give away at a young age. The novel is emotional, thought provoking, and hard to out down.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Stunningly compelling

I loved this so much that I implore everyone to listen, I'm sure you won't regret it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Satisfying Chinese Family Saga

A generations long saga with fascinating detail about the transition of China; the Oka minority and tea. Sub themes about adoption and women's rights but what will stay with me is the sense of sacred embedded in the culture. A satisfying end.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!