List Epithetical Books Empress
| Title | : | Empress |
| Author | : | Shan Sa |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Deluxe Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 336 pages |
| Published | : | May 2nd 2006 by Harper (first published 2003) |
| Categories | : | Historical. Historical Fiction. Cultural. China. Fiction |
Shan Sa
Hardcover | Pages: 336 pages Rating: 3.7 | 5634 Users | 431 Reviews
Description Toward Books Empress
A ravishing historical novel of one of China's most controversial historical figures: its first and only female emperor, Empress Wu, who emerged in the Tang Dynasty and ushered in a golden age. In seventh–century China, during the great Tang dynasty, a young girl from the humble Wu clan entered the imperial gynaecium, which housed ten thousand concubines. Inside the Forbidden City, she witnessed seductions, plots, murders, and brazen acts of treason. Propelled by a shrewd intelligence, an extraordinary persistence, and a friendship with the imperial heir, she rose through the ranks to become the first Empress of China. On the one hand, she was a political mastermind who quelled insurrections, eased famine, and opened wide the routes of international trade. On the other, she was a passionate patron of the arts who brought Chinese civilization to unsurpassed heights of knowledge, beauty, and sophistication. And yet, from the moment of her death to the present day, her name has been sullied, her story distorted, and her memoirs obliterated by men taking vengeance on a women who dared become Emperor. For the first time in thirteen centuries, Empress Wu flings open the gates of her Forbidden City and tells her own astonishing tale–revealing a fascinating, complex figure who in many ways remains modern to this day.
Describe Books Conducive To Empress
| Original Title: | Impératrice |
| ISBN: | 0060817585 (ISBN13: 9780060817589) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Literary Awards: | Prix des lecteurs du Livre de Poche for Littérature (2005) |
Rating Epithetical Books Empress
Ratings: 3.7 From 5634 Users | 431 ReviewsPiece Epithetical Books Empress
The author Shan Sa is a native Chinese woman. She wrote this book in French, and it was then translated into English (and other languages). What amazed me was the beauty of the language Sa used to describe the opulent scenes in an ancient Chinese palace in the 7th century A.D. The historical detail was amazing, including descriptions of life within the palace, rituals and beliefs, day to day life in ancient China, how commoners outside the palace survived, how the government was run, and so on.When I bought this book years ago, I couldn't make it through the first chapter. I was young (...well, younger) and the abstract concept of womb memories wasn't something I necessarily felt capable of grasping. But I picked it up a long time later and I'm thankful I never got rid of it in my adolescent naivete because this book is a force, in language, in storytelling, in characters; it's a truly lush, decadent and engrossing piece of narrative. I am fascinated by any culture not closely related
My Review: Yesterday, I reviewed a book about this same woman, but it was a narrated history book. This book is a historical novel in which you hear the story through the main character's thoughts and words. There was no reference section at the back of this book as there was in Daughter of Heaven, but the author spent three years researching her subject. This included traveling to the area where this all happened. She is an artist and used her artistic talent of visualizing each setting like a
The Empress is a poetic tale that gives one an in-depth look into the life of Empress Wu. The ruthless tactics used on the throne may shock one, but the author constructs the novel so that one understands the culture of the time. This book can get tedious at times with detail, but the overall story is strong and a person interested in Chinese history will enjoy the vivid descriptions!
I've a penchant for literature written with an eye on the grander scale of things. Most probably it comes with my preoccupation with critiquing the canon, albeit through far less flimsy bases than prose and universality and all that invisible-hand jazz. In return for paying attention to fields that are not required for the common range of English (history, politics, decolonization, gender dichotomy, all that fun stuff people like to pretend are subsidiary instead of the power generators of
To other women the choice of clothes was a form of ingenious exhibition, a shameless seduction. To me, dresses were like a breastplate that I put on to set off to war against this life."Reading this, was like drinking gold. The writing felt luxurious, compelling and very Chinese. I've lived in Hong Kong my entire life, my own mother is Chinese and very rarely have I read a novel that felt real, and unpretentious in employing 'nature' metaphors. These are commonly used in everyday life, but most
A few reasons why I recommend this book:-The tale of the one and only female emperor in the history of China.-A Machiavellian heroine who is determined to create her own destiny, against all odds.-The forbidden romance between a young crown prince and one of his royal father's widows.-The gorgeous backdrop of the Tang Dynasty, when the imperial China was at her peak.-Deadly power struggle within both the harem and the court.-The complicated family saga of both the Royal Family and the Wu clan,
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