In her historical fiction book, The Good Earth, Pearl S. Buck describes
the life of Wang Lung, a Chinese farmer, as he seeks land and the wealth it
holds. With his ever-serving and dedicated wife, O-lan, there to help with
family and work, his life is forever changed. Wang Lung must deal with family
members, the environment, and himself to fulfill his desire to gain land and
riches.
I
would rate The Good Earth with four
out of five stars. While historical fiction is not my favorite genre, I still
enjoy reading it to get a taste of the culture and mindset of times gone by.
While gaining understanding, I also gained an appreciation of the fact that I
don’t have to live under the constraints of that society (especially since I am
Chinese). Buck was able to evoke some really strong reactions and emotions
towards the characters and events in her book. It takes skill to get a reader
to develop such a deep dislike of one character and such a great admiration of
another. Although the characters’ actions show that Buck has a good
understanding of human and natural tendencies, it felt like some events were
too predictable at times. Overall, I think that The Good Earth is a subtly powerful and valuable book to read.
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