Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China is a 1991 (auto)biographical novel written by Chinese writer Jung Chang. It describes the author’s family history and tells the stories of three generations of women in the Chang family, starting with the biography of her grandmother, continuing with the biography of her mother, and ending with Chang’s personal autobiography (thus, the title Three Daughters of China).

The first story describes the life of Chang’s grandmother, Yu Fang. We learn that she has bound feet —an old Chinese tradition in which the feet of little girls were bound in order to modify their shape and make them smaller. Her father gave her to a rich war general when she was a young girl and had her turned into a concubine, as he wanted a higher social status.

The general had many wives and concubines, and six years after his marriage to Chang’s grandmother, Chang’s mother Bao Qin was born. The general, however, was deathly ill and had no son, which meant that his first wife would own everything after he died, including Bao Qin. Thus, Yu Fang escaped with the child, lying that Bao Qin was dead, and remarried Dr. Xia with whom she lived a comfortable and happy life.

The second story is about Bao Qin (aka De Hong), Chang’s mother. She was named by her father, and her name literally means 'precious zither.' Unlike her mother, Bao Qin had a relatively easier life and was seen as a strong woman, as she worked for the communist party of China and Mao Zedong’s Red Army ever since she was fifteen. She is described as a tough woman who fell in love with an officer named Wang Yu, who will later become her husband.

Bao Qin and Wang Yu weren’t allowed to spend much time together, however, and when they were transferred to Yibin, Wang Yu was traveling by car, and, because of her slightly lower rank, Bao Qin was traveling by foot. Neither knew that she was pregnant. In Yibin, Bao Qin received heavy military training. Combined with the effects from the strenuous journey, she miscarried. After that, her husband swore to never allow his wife to go through something similar again, and together they had five children.

The third story is Chang’s own life story. She tells us how her life was majorly influenced by the Cultural Revolution and the philosophy of Mao Zedong. She explains how, after being publicly tortured for promoting capitalism, Chang’s father had slowly begun to lose his mental health. She says how she was sent to the countryside to be educated by the peasants about how Chairman Mao’s way is the right way.

When the Cultural Revolution came to an end, Chang returned home and managed to get into university to study English. Not long after that, Mao Zedong died and the nation was in mourning. She received a scholarship to study in England and soon moved there. She still lives in England, to this very day, and occasionally visits her family and friends back in China whenever she receives permission from the government.

The novel was praised for its honest and thought-provoking narrative, and sold over 13 million copies. It has been translated into 37 languages, received many positive reviews and award nominations, and even won the 1993 British Book of the Year award. Even though it received a lot of commercial success, Wild Swans: The Three Daughters of China is considered highly controversial and is banned in China; however, it is still available for purchase and reading in Hong Kong and Taiwan.