Su Tong

I don't read much Chinese literature hence I was skeptical to read this initially. At the start, I did find it quite an effort trying to get through the book as it kept mentioning about losing one's soul. It was kinda hard to trudge on and when it reached the 80 yuan bickering between Baorun with Fairy Princess, it slowly progressed to a more bearable story-line.

Thankfully, this is a well translated book with a simple yet poetic justice approach that made this book work. However, I did find there were too many fillers that sort of lengthen the book itself hence it is a rather thick read. It had me flipping through a lot wondering when it will end. Aside from that, it was illustrated nicely of the surroundings and plots with a straight worded descriptive prose.

Overall, the book shares the indifference in culture, filial piety and civic consciousness of a small town. Most believing in their upbringing, praying to the God and respecting their ancestors and elderly. Bad luck and untoward wrath will come upon those who ignore. It sure seems like a book of mindful teaching with a philosophical approach to me, with Confucius, Buddhism and Christianity addled into this book.

I would recommend this book to someone who can patiently read through the story and understanding the moral of it all. It may be dark but it sure has lots of hidden messages and teachings to be digested. All in all, it eventually became a nice book to dwell on. I especially liked the third part, Fairy Princess' perils and dilemma. The ending was truly unexpected yet worth the effort to finally finished reading it. That twist though... so reminded me of Murakami's style of writing.… (lisätietoja)

This is an epic tale of three characters, Baorun, Liu Sheng and the "Fairy Princess," who live in a small town in China. Each section of the book focuses on one character but their stories are interwoven throughout. The three were childhood acquaintances (not really friends) who had a pivotal encounter one day that affected their lives. Now they all owe some type of debt to each other. Each choice that is made, affects a new course in life. Baorun has an obsession with knot tying which lands him in trouble. Liu Sheng comes from a well-to-do family but has problems with self-control. The "Fairy Princess" came from very humble beginnings but has always believed she was destined for greater things. Baorun's grandfather is also a main character throughout who thinks that he has lost his soul through an injury in the top of his head. Did he really lose his soul? Or is it old-age dementia....mental illness? There are many references to ancestral ghosts who come back to haunt the living. Or is it just the characters' own consciences gnawing at their own souls? You'll find some humor as well as darkness in this book. Su Tong was a joint winner of the Mao Dun Literature Prize for this novel in 2015. I did have trouble following some of the English translation since it was very much a British English translation. The word choice and phrasing was a little stiff and unusual for an American reader.… (lisätietoja)

> Babelio : https://www.babelio.com/livres/Tong-Epouses-et-concubines/35522
> Le Livre de Poche (celiatas) : https://fr.calameo.com/books/0043038443afedcb9a996

> Songlian a dix-neuf ans, elle est étudiante, elle est belle... Mais la ruine de sa famille l'oblige à devenir la quatrième épouse du riche Chen Zuoqian. Dans le huis clos de sa nouvelle vie, elle va découvrir la seule loi qui compte : celle de la séduction. Car la favorite de la nuit est la maîtresse de la maison.
Jalousie, haine, pouvoir : quatre femmes se livrent une lutte à mort pour le plaisir du maître, dans la Chine des années 1920 encore féodale...
Révélation majeure de la jeune littérature chinoise. Épouses et concubines a été porté à l'écran par le cinéaste Zhang Yimou et a connu en France un extraordinaire succès.… (lisätietoja)

Binu's husband Wan Qiliang is pressganged into working on the Great Wall of China. She sets out on the long journey to bring him a set of winter clothes.

It's difficult to judge this without knowing the original Chinese folk tale. Is it a straightforward retelling or is the author riffing on the story somehow? I certainly enjoyed it as a story of a journey across China by one woman and a frog who may or may not be the reincarnation of a woman from the nearby town.

One annoying feature is that the book has no apostrophes (were or we're, shed or she'd, etc?) or speech marks, which can be momentarily confusing.… (lisätietoja)