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The Good Earth (House of Earth, #1)

Pearl S. Buck,

Stephanie Reents (Contributor),

Cynthia Brantley Johnson (Editor)

Start date: June 1, 2024

Finish date: June 30, 2024

Discussion: New School Classics- 1915-2005

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New School Classics- 1915-2005

Farewell, My Lovely - Spoilers
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last updated Nov 02, 2025 01:15AM

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What Members Thought

Apr 03, 2017 Kelly_Hunsaker_reads ... rated it it was amazing

Shelves: pulitzer, classics, oprah-bookclub

Pearl S Buck loved China and it show in this book. She wrote this story with beauty, simplicity and poignancy. Every word is part of one long love letter to the land and the culture. As I read this book I found myself wandering across the globe and through time. My great-great aunt was a nun who lived in China from 1929 - 1949 and her letters described the people and the place with the same reverence.

I will revisit Wang Lung and O-lan again very soon.

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Dec 25, 2012 Ellen Librarian rated it really liked it

I've wanted to read this classic for ages and I'm glad I finally got to it now that I'm on a China kick. The story, which follows the changing fortunes of a peasant family in pre-revolution China, is easy to read in that it is written in deceptively simple prose. But it's anything but a simple story. Buck's genius is in weaving a quintessentially Chinese story that also feels universal. ...more

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Jan 23, 2014 Julia rated it really liked it

Shelves: history, ya, classics, audio-books

Seems simplistic today but I suppose her anti-communism stance was bold when this was written. And the scope of the story was a lovely segue into my current story, Angle of Repose.

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Dec 06, 2010 Rachel marked it as to-read