Mumsnet Talk

Hi
can anyone recommend a good book set in China for a book club read? My book club are following the travels of one of our membesr who is travelling round the world and China is the next stop.

Most of Amy Tan's books? The Bonesetter's Daughter is my favourite.

Wild Swans - about Chinese Women and their lives. Its a good book.

Wild Swans is brilliant.

The hungry ghosts set in hong kong was excellent .

i really liked the private papers of eastern jewel

Wild Swans. Jaw droppingly good and one of my favourit reads ever. Set across a timespan of 3 generations and really gives an insight into that time period. Its a true story.

I really struggled with Wild Swans and gave up after about 100 pages or so, but I have kept it so maybe I should give it another go.

I quite liked The Binding Chair by Kathryn Harrison when I read it a few years ago.

can I recommend 'River Town' by Peter Hessler. It's an account of the 2 years the author spent living in China in the 90s, teaching english, as part of the Peace Corps and is a fascinating insight into life in modern China.
Also any Pearl Buck

Fragrant Harbour - John Lanchester
The Secret Mandarin - Sarah Sheridan
The Emperors Bones - Adam WIlliams
Empress Orchid - Anchee Min

Have read and enjoyed all of these - mainly set in historical China - though the first one is Hong Kong centred

Have a search on here, someone asked a similar question a while back.

I really enjoyed Empress Orchid.

Also look at Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. The description of foot-binding is agonizing .. but a great book.

Gosh, there are loads of brilliant ones. Wild Swans is probably the most seminal, but all the Amy Tans, or 'Daughter Of The River' are all really good too.

"I really enjoyed Empress Orchid."

So did I, and Wild Swans.

Not sure you can beat Wild Swans IMO.
Been years since I read it, but have a sudden urge to get it back out

I loved Empress Orchid too, read it a few years ago and am just about to start on the sequel. Wasn't very impressed with the Secret Madarin though, found it a bit dissappointing.

The Good Earth - Pearl Buck
Empress Orchid - Anchee Min
The Vagrants - Yiyun lee
Shanghai Baby - Wei Hui
Snowflower and the secret fan - Lisa See
Peony in Love - Lisa See
Monkey - Wu Chung En
The Story of the Stone - Cao Xueqin

All brilliant books but v different from each other

Also loved The Book of Loss by Julith Jedamus

Beijing Coma by Ma Jian is a really good more current novel. It revolves around the Tianamen square occupation.

'The Good Women of China: Hidden Voices' by Xinran is brilliant. Although it's non fiction it would still be very suitable for a book group. It tells the stories of ordinary Chinese women, through interviews and letters received by a female Chinese radio journalist in the 1980s.

I have that one as well. I loved it.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is brilliant - much better than its title suggests

Wild Swans upset my mum so much it turned her into a mad biatch for the whole of our last ever family holiday. Just saying.

Oh, and don't be sucked in by The Something Concubine by Somebody Furnivall - it was the worst book I have ever read, and I quite like bad books.