Excellence.
Spring, Summer, Asteroid, Bird is an accessible resource on non-Western, non-three-act-structure storytelling.
I had my fair share of discussing and readings around structure, story themes/human values in stories and narrative styles and choices as an educator and writer myself. Many of the resources published are first and foremost academic, colossal and not suitable for the general reader’s interests or only for those in academia/those who have a deep interest in the topic.

Lien’s book is one of the most accessible, most practical books on circular, nesting stories and four-act structure; in other words, non-Western storytelling with different values than the Western story value norms.

Lien offers various and diverse examples in different mediums, and break them down in a way that many readers can comprehend and enjoy.
The questions and cases are well structured. This book is an epitome of story analysis for the general reader.
The length is ideal and sets the right expectations for the depth, and Lien manages to convey the essentials without sacrificing the quality of his arguments. This is also the kind of tone that I am writing in when I am addressing beginners in my expertises.

Immediately, Lien sets the pace and expectations that this book is an exercise in exploration, not hard and fast “rules” or binaries. His words about diversity in storytelling being bigger than identities of characters and authors deeply resonated with me.

I liked the use of storytelling in all its forms: books, video games, movies, oral stories. Lien advises that readers familiarize themselves with the works cited before diving into the book. And while he gives an overview of plot for readers that might not be familiar with the examples, I took so much more away from the sections on the works I was familiar with. Dive into the materials, fellow readers!

I loved the exercises that were included. Lien gives us a robust exploration of his observations and research and then invites us to put it into practice.

The only slightly off thing I noticed was how the structure sometimes felt like a thesis being defended. It was academic in its layout and some of its language; the detailed deconstruction of the examples sometimes felt more like a research project than something designed to educate the curious.

Sections of this book should be required reading for creative writing courses, and anyone who works in publishing. How freeing is Lien’s invitation to throw off stifling and tired western tropes, rules, and confines in our stories!

I was privileged to have my request to read this book accepted through NetGalley. Thank you W. W. Norton! 💫