Main Character - Red Scarf Girl

The Red Scarf Girl is an autobiography by Ji-Li Jiang that talks about the Cultural Revolution in China, as far as I have read. She was struggling to keep up with revolution in this trying time. She was born on Chinese New Year, and her name was specially chosen, meaning lucky and beautiful. As a child, Ji-Li always excelled at studies, and she hoped to go to a good high school, good college, and have a successful life. However, when she was twelve years old, in sixth grade, the Cultural Revolution began and changed her life.

Because of Ji-Li's family's political background, it made life hard for her family during the Cultural Revolution. They were always targeted by "Red Guards," who were supporters of Chairman Mao, or the founder of the Cultural Revolution. Her grandfather was a landlord, and landlords were looked down upon since they were supposedly cruel and treated their subjects ruthlessly. At school, she was made fun of by classmates, especially three boys, once being Du-Hai, because of her landlord grandfather. Therefore, she sometimes wished her grandfather was never a landlord or that she never had any ties with him. Also, due to her family's political background, Ji-Li's father did not allow her to audition for a dance training class for the Central Liberation Army Arts Academy. When her house was ransacked, Ji-Li had her precious stamp collection taken away since it was considered "fourolds", or something that was traditional. It had taken her a long time and hard work to collect all her stamps.

Just like many other people, Ji-Li and her family were struggling to not be tortured and taunted during the Cultural Revolution.

*I have only read about halfway through the book. However, I believe that Ji-Li's opinion about Chairman Mao will reverse and she will turn against the Cultural Revolution and the new beliefs.