There Are A Few Famous Chinese Historical Novels

Historical Tapestry has invited me to guest post with a discussion of historical novels set in China. This in response to my comment on Mary Tod's blog A Writer of History that I find historical fiction about China to be indifferently represented in forums devoted to the historical genre.

I assume the principle reason for this scarcity may be that we American readers are not so familiar with Asian history; in our schools Western history generally receives more emphasis – Athens rather the Warring States, Rome instead of the Han Dynasty, the Hanover monarchs and not the Manchu empire. So, the Far East is a longer reach.

Still, the reasons for reading Chinese historical novels are not unlike those for reading historicals set in the West or near East. The people invoked have similar troubles and triumphs, and the events evoked have similar storm and stress – but in different contexts often fascinating in their contrast. We gain some insight into people of another time, and perhaps into how our time came to be, by sharing in their drama. Adventure, war, hard times, love, understanding – they live in the pages of historical fiction about China just as they do in that about other places.

And what am I calling historical fiction? In addition to novels about events regarded as historical, events older than 50 years according to some forums, there are included here titles that, while not historical when published, are set in places that time has since changed enough to make them quite different now and, as such, have become chronicles of the vanished past.

There are original English-language novels about China, and Chinese-language novels widely available in translation. There are older books rarely heard of now, and more recent novels. And there are novels about Chinese-American experience (besides Amy Tan) I've left off the list because they are not quite historicals yet. Some of these are about earlier history and others are about more recent events.

Writing Your Own Online Novel

Because I'm throwing myself into the world of serial fiction for the next year or so, I've decided to start a new feature/topic for my non-fiction posts called Writing the Online Novel. Online writing is a different beast than what fiction writers are used to. For the most part, it's closer to journalism than to books. Books, and most fiction magazines, are immersive reading. They're designed to be read without distraction, for the reader to submerge his or her consciousness into the story.

Because of this immersion factor, the audience for a book is very conscious about its choices. They aren't just paying for the book, they're making a major time and attention commitment to it. They shop for books deliberately, looking for something special, which they will consume later, when they are ready to dive in and lose the world. The book must be worth that time and energy commitment. This makes them more attuned to genre and category and other boundaries.

The web, on the other hand, is more like a newspaper, lots of different things on any page, meant to be skimmed, full of everything from sports scores, to comics to commentary, along with the news and features, and ads. People approach newspapers and the web with a more "consume it now" mindset. No commitments involved at all. It's just skimming and browsing and killing time.

Which isn't to say that readers don't dip more deeply into some things, but that's not the point of screwing around on the internet. The point, more often then not, is to see what's going on. Right now. You skim through headlines and feeds and aggregators and social media, to see what catches your interest. You don't know what you're going to find.

And it doesn't always matter if you find much. You may feel completely satisfied with your experience just skimming the first paragraphs and summaries, and catching a few cartoons or LOLcats, or a video of an otter doing a back flip, or seeing the weather or sport scores.

So readers on the internet aren't looking for the same kind of exact experience they look for in a book. After all, we've already filtered out the bad stuff by sticking to things we like and trust: we subscribe to feeds, check out certain sites, follow friends and people we find interesting. And because of that, we can leave ourselves open to a wider range of experience than we do when we're shopping for books. We are less conscious of boundaries.

We have to make the same commitment to everything we write, whether the reader is just skimming or engaged in full-out commitment. It's the same time-consuming work, and burns up the same high level of brain energy. So we writers tend to see online fiction the same way we book fiction. It's just delivered differently.

I think we need to start looking at online fiction -- particularly online novels -- is a medium unto itself. It has its own audience, its own requirements, its own modes and problems. And even though serialized fiction, and newspapers and magazines have been around for centuries, this version of the form is new in a whole lot of different ways.

How E-books Have Changed The Way That College Students Study

E-books were once thought of as a nice way to read books for entertainment purposes, and not much else. In recent years, they have exploded onto the education scene, as many schools are using them almost exclusively. It's interesting to consider how e-books have changed the way that college students study.

In many college courses, students can get the books that they need a in e-book format instead of buying a printed copy. These books are becoming required reading in many classes across the country. In fact, almost 60 percent of students who bought e-books said that some of them were required course material.

With this method, students can simply download the book that they need onto an e-reader like an Amazon Kindle, and start reading it. Many different types of schools are using e-books for their classes. Graphic design schools, trade schools, nursing schools, and regular universities are all jumping on the e-book bandwagon.

One reason that a lot of schools are going to e-books for class is because they save a lot of paper. Without having to physically print up the books, a ton of paper can be saved. This creates a solid eco-friendly brand image for educational facilities.

Another big reason that students are turning to e-books is so that they can save money. When you have to buy a book, it is usually quite a bit cheaper in e-book form. In addition to being able to save money on the purchase of the e-book, you can also rent e-books. For example, Amazon makes it possible to rent textbooks for as little as one day or as long as you need to. This is a lot easier than having to rent the book from a local store or ship it back and forth to a rental company. You just pull up the book you need on an e-reader, and then send it back when you’re done.

Although e-books have started to catch on, they have not completely replaced regular textbooks just yet. Many students don’t yet own e-readers, which is a bit of an obstacle to being able to read e-books. You could always download an e-book and read it on a computer or on a smartphone, but it’s not as easy as reading it on an e-reader. As the prices of electronic readers come down, more students will start to get them, and e-books will become even more common in college.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society Review

If you're looking for a good book to read—either for your own enjoyment or a book club suggestion—what's one of the first things you do? You can ask a friend. But word-of-mouth recommendations depend to a large extent on personal taste. If you want a more reliable gauge, you'll want to find book reviews.
Let's say you're at a bookstore and you're holding a book in your hand. Invariably, you turn to the back cover where you find excerpts of mainstream media reviews. They're glowing, of course— "Characters with heart!" "A non-stop page-turner!" "A major new voice in fiction!"

When looking for a good book review, look for one that turns a critical eye on a book's style and content. A genuine book review considers the following elements:
Characters—are main characters convincing? Do they have emotional and psychological complexity and act according to authentic motivation? Or are they flat and one-dimensional with little detail of their inner lives?
Plot—is the plot predictable or does it surprise, going where you least expect it? Are there interesting plot twists? Do events unfold organically, naturally? Or are they forced—leaving you feeling manipulated. Does the ending wrap up loose ends? Does it wrap up things too neatly, to the point of being pat or trite? Or does it leave issues unresolved, open to different interpretations?
Ideas—does the book offer an exploration of ideas—perhaps a moral or ethical problem, or the meaning of relationships (familial, romantic, or friendship-based)? Does it offer interesting insights or a fresh perspective?
Style—is the writing heavy handed,...uninspired with over-written or even cliched phrases . Or is the writing feel fresh, even inspired? Is the writing funny or witty?
Where do you find helpful reviews? The best, most in-depth are from major daily newspapers: the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune or Sun-Times, just to mention some. Look also in periodicals like Time, Newsweek, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Atlantic Monthly.
You can head to your public library and dig through past issues of newspapers and periodicals. Better yet, many libraries subscribe to online databases that carry the full texts of articles from the major papers and magazines.
You can also go online at home. But most newspapers and magazines require subscriptions to get into their archives, so you won't always have access to full articles—although sometimes you get lucky and find them on right on Google.
You can also go to customer reviews at the big online booksellers—Amazon and Barnes & Noble. But customer reviews tend to be all over the place and are highly idiocentric. They can be helpful but not always reliable.
The best bet is to find an online book site you can trust, a website with an index of titles, reading guides, and book reviews. Look especially for ones that carry complete reviews—not just blurbs—by Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and especially Kirkus Reviews. Libraries subscribe to these review publications, so they tend to be forthright in their assessments of books—after all, it's what libraries pay them for.

A Beloved Classic Of All Time, With One Of The Most Favorite Love Stories Of All Time

Pride and Prejudice was first published in 1813, although Jane Austen had written it between October of 1796 and August of 1797. This was at a time when women were expected to stay at home and just be a pretty face, not think for themselves, and not involve themselves in politics or careers (read: “men’s work”). Men were authors; women were not. Austen’s father first submitted Pride and Prejudice to a publisher in 1797, under the title First Impressions, but it was rejected probably for the sole reason that it had been written by a woman. Even when Pride and Prejudice was finally published in 1813, Austen’s name did not appear as the author of the book, and in fact, Austen was never given credit for being the author of any of her works while she was alive. The title page of Pride and Prejudice, when published, read “by the author of Sense and Sensibility.”
　　
Regardless, Jane Austen is one of the most widely read authors of English literature and there is no doubt in my mind as to why this is true. She had a lot to say about women and society in England during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Pride and Prejudice is quite comic and it paints a clear picture of how women who lacked their own fortune oftentimes had to forsake love to marry for economic security and social status.
　　
It's a very sweet story in which the authoress has picturized the glamoures society of England during the 17th century. It has made me experience the world enchanted by true love and the attraction of a man towards a girl. We can understand the different relationships like sister, mother, child and a lover.
　　
-Srishti, Delhi
　　
I feel that after reading the book I have learned a lot about the old times and how life used to be. For example, most girls married not for love but for security. I've recently watched the new film and many parts that are in the book aren't in the film that I felt should be. Overall very sweet love story.
　　
-Jessica, Isle of Wight
　　
I had to read this book for a high school project. Being 16 and growing up as a woman in today's society it is nice to read a book about the old days. Sometimes I feel that I can be a lot like the protagonist of the story. Social inferiority (much like Darcy's) still can be found these days. Overall I give this book 100% on my scale, I'm not one for the sappy novels but this one is for sure a page-turner!
　　
-Alpana, Canada
　　
I first read this book when I was just 10 and from that time on it has been my favorite book. The book conveys the feelings and emotions of all its different characters very well and charms all its readers with the wit and liveliness of Elizabeth Bennet, the misunderstood character of Mr. Darcy, the beautiful, sensible Jane, and the agreeable Mr. Bingley as well as all the other characters. This book, with its many different types of characters is definitely a must read for everyone.
　　
It is a satisfying love story, if that’s what you’re after, but it’s also much more than that. The characters are great—even the ones whose personalities I can’t stand—and the book really has a lot to say about people’s pride, vanity and prejudices in general.
　　
I love this book because I love the characters. A few of them really work my nerves, but I still love how well-written they are. Elizabeth is my favorite because she is so independent, headstrong and outspoken. She refuses to marry for any reason other than love, even if that means she doesn’t end up marrying someone who can give her a better economic and social status. She has her faults, but she is not afraid to admit to them when she knows she’s wrong. Her mother and two of her younger sisters annoy her as much as they annoy me, and she can’t stand the snotty sisters of Mr. Bingley, whom I despise every time I read the book.

It is apparent from the first chapter that Elizabeth takes after her father, who is also headstrong and outspoken. He loves to put his annoying wife in her place, but he does it in very humorous ways without being too nasty. I get a lot of laughs out of Pride and Prejudice every time I read it, and most of those laughs are courtesy of Mr. Bennet. Mrs. Bennet annoys the heck out of me and I find myself audibly telling her to shut up throughout the book. Seriously, if she would only just shut up. I avoid people like the snotty Bingley sisters like the plague in real life because if anyone deserves a good slap across the face, they do. People who think they’re better than everyone else because of money or social status, like the Bingley sisters and Lady Catherine (Mr. Darcy’s aunt), just disgust me. Mr. Collins could use a nice piece of duct tape over his mouth, as well, since he really makes himself look like a fool every time he speaks. Finally, Mr. Darcy is infuriating and endearing at the same time.

Wit against wit, pride against prejudice, the continued encounters each grew into something more. It was the belief then that society could not tolerate a relationship such as theirs, and while one (in the beginning) struggled against his feelings, another was entirely ignorant of his affection towards her. It could not be overlooked however when in light of his feelings, his mistakes that caused the sadness of a loved one were shown, and his unjust actions towards an acquaintance were clarified. What appeared to be pride and prejudice on both sides eventually gave way in the story, leading to respect, modesty and even love.
　　
Truly a love story what one would like to believe, still existed in our modern world.
　　
What I loved most about the book is the witty dialogue between the characters, with a detailed relay of events and presentation of characters throughout the entire story, I believe it to be a much more interesting presentation than the movies themselves. One of the best things in the book is that despite the use of somewhat classical English, each sentence in itself is a presentation of the artful language of such a time. It was also a great thing to have to watch how slowly each of the characters evolved within the story, and also how eventually they came either to love, accept, and feel dislike for each other.
　　
A book I wholly recommend, this book is honestly not an easy read and may need more concentration in reading it than other books. Really a wonderful classic. Now I see why many people fell in love with the book, the author and its characters. Definitely a book one must read at least once in their life.