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A review by dkimball
Sons by Pearl S. Buck
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The story of Wang Lung's three sons, and the uses they make of a princely inheritance.
The eldest, Wang the Landlord, is fat and decadent and babyish, despised by everyone around him (including the narrator, who has a strong voice of her own); never has a life debauchery sounded less appealing.
The middle son, Wang the Merchant, is a fascinating figure in his own right: he's a miser, seen from the inside; Ebenezer Scrooge minus the ghosts. We're shown how the Merchant thinks, what a miser can find satisfying in life.
But the third son is the focus of the story. He ran away to become a soldier, and rose to a captaincy in the army of some warlord or other; but the warlord turned fat and decadent, while Wang the Third -- now called Wang the Tiger -- distinguished himself for his ambition, his strong spirit, his passionate austerity. He secures his share of his father's inheritance at last, and marches north with his 108 men, to carve out a kingdom in the wilderness and get the ball rolling on the conquest of all China.
Wang the Tiger's effort is doomed, and he does some nasty stuff along the way; but his story is a fascinating one. Imagine an older Paul Atreides, with no supernatural elements to help or hinder him, and you're not far from the thrust of his story.
We also see a great deal more of Pear Blossom. I can't say that her arc ends in success and happiness; but she at least finds peace. If Wang the Tiger wasn't in the book, she and Wang the Merchant would be well worth the price of admission.
The eldest, Wang the Landlord, is fat and decadent and babyish, despised by everyone around him (including the narrator, who has a strong voice of her own); never has a life debauchery sounded less appealing.
The middle son, Wang the Merchant, is a fascinating figure in his own right: he's a miser, seen from the inside; Ebenezer Scrooge minus the ghosts. We're shown how the Merchant thinks, what a miser can find satisfying in life.
But the third son is the focus of the story. He ran away to become a soldier, and rose to a captaincy in the army of some warlord or other; but the warlord turned fat and decadent, while Wang the Third -- now called Wang the Tiger -- distinguished himself for his ambition, his strong spirit, his passionate austerity. He secures his share of his father's inheritance at last, and marches north with his 108 men, to carve out a kingdom in the wilderness and get the ball rolling on the conquest of all China.
Wang the Tiger's effort is doomed, and he does some nasty stuff along the way; but his story is a fascinating one. Imagine an older Paul Atreides, with no supernatural elements to help or hinder him, and you're not far from the thrust of his story.
We also see a great deal more of Pear Blossom. I can't say that her arc ends in success and happiness; but she at least finds peace. If Wang the Tiger wasn't in the book, she and Wang the Merchant would be well worth the price of admission.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Suicide, War
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Rape, Sexual violence