The Red Chamber
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3.0 • 1 Rating
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
On the death of her mother, Lin Daiyu, a beautiful young girl, is taken far away to the capital to live with her mother's aristocratic relatives in the inner courtyards of Rongguo Mansion. educated and resourceful, Daiyu has grown up in relative freedom down south. Now she finds herself in the strictly regulated society of 18th century Beijing where women are bought and traded like cattle. This is a highly competitive female society of first wives, concubines and servants all jockeying for power.
Dazzled by the easy charm and rebellious intelligence of her cousin, Baoyu, whose miraculous birth with a piece of jade in his mouth means that he holds the fortune of the family in his hands, Daiyu falls dangerously in love. And as she tries to tread a delicate path between following her heart and doing what is asked of her, she discovers that no one's loyalty is immune to the pressures of society. Beautifully written, THE RED CHAMBER brings you into a world where wealth and duty, love and passion, continually collide.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
YA author Chen's debut novel for adults is a modern retelling of Cao Xueqin's 18th-century Chinese classic, Dream of the Red Chamber. While it doesn't hold a candle to the original in length or its Tolstoy-esque cast of characters, this revamped version retains much of its predecessor's spirit. Focusing mostly on three female characters once sequestered 17-year-old Daiyu, who is shipped off to live with her unknown rich relatives in Beijing after her mother's death; ornery 23-year-old Xifeng, whose husband conspicuously cheats on her; and matronly18-year-old Xue Baochai, an earnest shadow of a girl in love with Baoyu, Daiyu's charming cousin Chen (Peiling and the Chicken-Friend Christmas) plumps the epic tale full of lavish details of the palace, sumptuous feasts, and day-to-day minutiae, levitating whispered conversations overheard by the wrong parties, capricious scheming between family members, and gossip hidden beneath every elegant tapestry and beaded pillow to lofted heights. Aside from the entertaining love triangle between Daiyu, Baochai, and Baoyu, there's much to do about more serious matters, too especially in the latter half of the novel, when political unrest in Beijing threatens to destroy the family's tenuous hierarchy. For those familiar with the original, there's also a different ending. Supplemental material includes an author's note, the Jia family tree, and a list of major characters. First printing: 60,000.
