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First of three wonderful novels chronicling the adventures of Master Kao Li, a scholar with "a slight flaw in his character", and his trusty sidekick, Yu Lu, better known as Number Ten Ox for convoluted reasons. Hughart's delightful fantasy, like many good fantasies, revolves around a quest. It seems the children of Number Ten Ox's village are mysteriously dying and the only cure is a 'Great Root of Power,' spread throughout the empire and guarded by fearsome sentinels and insidious traps.
Maste ...more
Maste ...more
I picked this up based on some kind of list along the lines of "Great Non-European Fantasy Books" and its winning the 1985 World Fantasy Award. It's the first in a trilogy featuring a pair of unlikely heroes: village bumpkin with a heart of gold Number Ten Ox, and wizened wine-soaked genius investigator Master Li. When the children of Ox's village all fall into an unexplained coma, he is sent to Peking to find someone to help, and Master Li is all he can afford. And thus, the duo are joined in a
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My name is Gaijinmama, and to quote my favorite character in this book, there is a slight flaw in my character.
4 stars because it was an absolutely delightful journey, clearly written by an author who loved this story, characters, and the culture that influenced their creation. Also, one of the characters wants to be reincarnated as a three-toed sloth. I am deeply enamored with sloths.
Minus one star for misogyny and cultural appropriation, which were viewed very differently in 1984 when the book ...more
4 stars because it was an absolutely delightful journey, clearly written by an author who loved this story, characters, and the culture that influenced their creation. Also, one of the characters wants to be reincarnated as a three-toed sloth. I am deeply enamored with sloths.
Minus one star for misogyny and cultural appropriation, which were viewed very differently in 1984 when the book ...more
This book was so fantastic I asked the library to give me then next two in the series IMMEDIATELY! ...I am STILL waiting (it is very difficult). If you love classic Chinese novels, or even just anime 'based' (however loosely) on Chinese classics then READ. THIS. BOOK! It is mesmerizing. I had trouble putting this book down and that hasn't happened in AGES!
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An absolute gem of a book. I read it every few years and it never fails to delight.
Dec 07, 2009
Ali
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