
So, my first week back in college has been a bit hectic, especially since it rained most of Monday and Tuesday (so lots of running in the rain between classes), but in between the freaking out over syllabi and all I’ll have to do this semester, I read this book.
This classic is one I’ve wanted to read for years (I feel like I start off most of my reviews with that sentence). In fact, I own two other Pearl S. Buck books: Pavilion of Women and Imperial Woman. But I’ve heard this is her most famous one, and the first of a trilogy of books examining China during the rapidly changing time of the early 1900’s. Pearl S. Buck is an interesting author, having spend half of her life in China due to her missionary parents. Because of that, she has a deep understanding of China, and yet she can look at it from an outside perspective, not swayed by being brought up in the traditions. This could be a positive or negative, but for me I love how she examines what most Chinese authors of the time take for granted, because to her this world is unique and different.
Release: 1931.
Synopsis: This family tale follows a humble Chinese farmer Wang Lung, as he marries and builds a family as he works as a farmer to buy his own land and grow in wealth. The story is backdropped by the changing atmosphere of China during the early 1900s.
Spoiler Review
For not really being fond of any of the characters, I was surprised how much I liked this book. Similar to George Orwell’s 1984, the characters are very much a product of their world and upbringing. They make foolish mistakes, or let others make silly decisions, simply because they have been taught it is right. It is right for a man to take a mistress even if he has a wife. It is right to consider selling a daughter into slavery to have money for a journey home. In this story, the characters seem always to be in this river of grey morality, where good morals can easily be placed aside for pleasure or gain. But mostly, this book is about examining the average Chinese farmer during the time and this family is merely a lens of which we see the rest of the world.
The story starts on the day of Wang Lung’s marriage to a slave girl of a wealthy house in town. And it ends with Wang Lung dying, leaving behind his many children and grandchildren. The story follows him exclusively, though we see his family clearly through his eyes. O-Lan is his wife, who helps him tirelessly build up his farm, and does not even complain when he is wealthy and brings in a mistress to live in his house. Out of any of the characters, she was my favorite, strong and hard-working. Though, if I had been her, I would have knocked Wang Lung over the head a few times. But she, like all the characters, is a product of her time. Other characters include their children, Wang Lung’s father who lives with them, his uncle, people living in the wealthy house in town, and other people they meet.
The descriptions are very practical and while I won’t say the story is slow-moving, Buck does well in selecting only instances which impact the story through the forty years or so it is set. Most of the stories I read are set over a shorter time (whether it be a few weeks or a year), so I find it fascinating how Buck paced a story that takes place over several decades. I never felt bored or like we were forced to watch monotonous scenes. Even seemingly boring moments gave depth to the characters.
Saying that, I still haven’t decided if I’m going to read the next two books of the trilogy. The second book, Sons, seems to follow Wang Lung’s sons during the founding of a new China. The third book, A House Divided, follows Wang Yuan (the grandson of Wang Lung), who returns to China as the country is on the brink of war and his family is in tumult. They might be interesting, because they look at the years following great changes in China. But it might also be very similar to this story.
Either way, I did enjoy this book. I didn’t like the characters, but I could understand and at time sympathize with them. The world is lushly developed and I love how this book examines the average farmer in China, whereas so many books look merely at the lives of the wealthy.
Have you heard of this book or read it? Does it look interesting to you? Let me know your thoughts down in the comments, follow my blog for more musings and, as always,
Best wishes in your life full of adventure,
Madame Writer
I love Pearl S. Buck, she wrote in The Good Earth: ” ‘Well, and they must all starve if the plants starve.’ It was true that all their lives depended on the earth.”
I tried to write a blog about her, see whether you like it: https://stenote.blogspot.com/2019/01/an-interview-with-pearl.html
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She is an amazing author, I agree! I want to read all her books now. And I liked your blog! It’s creative to do an imaginary interview with Buck.
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I’ve recently finished reading this one. Your opinion also reflects mine. The characters weren’t necessarily interesting. The intricacies and the presentation of the different facets of Chinese culture were on point though.
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Exactly! It was the historical/cultural details which made this book interesting.
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It sounds really intriguing!
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It was. Usually, I don’t like family sagas, but the world is beautiful in this one.
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Same, I’m not usually a fan. But this does sound interesting. Might be a bit too high brow for me, just coming out of a reading slump, but I think I’ll definitely bear it in mind for the future.
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It’s very high brow. I wouldn’t recommend it for getting you out of that reading slump.
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So enriching to see a classic reviewed. Inspiration to all writers! –bowmaneditor/bowmanauthor
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I actually read mostly classics. There never seems an end to amazing classical novels!
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I also read this book in high school and would like to read it again to see how it holds up. Your astute comments on Buck’s unique perspective make me think it would. I also was really struck by O-lan, a character that had stayed with me through the years.
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O-lan is such an interesting character. On the surface, she is a typical housewife raised in slavery, but deep down she is such a subtle and complex character. I would love to hear your thoughts, if you do end up rereading it!
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I read this book in high school, and was thinking just a few days that I should re-read it again with an adult’s understanding of world history. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
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I wish I had read it when I was younger too, because I think I would have had a different view of it even five years ago. If you do reread it, I’d love to know what you think of it now.
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