Barefoot Doctor
A Novel
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
A profound, poignant story of a village healer and her community, from one of the world’s great contemporary novelists
“A complex and illuminating portrait of a group of healers in China . . . [that] offers profound insights about what it means to pursue and live a fulfilling life.”—Publishers Weekly
“A barefoot doctor herself, [Can Xue] has a unique and powerful way of transporting readers to new worlds where reality and magic are intertwined, and she uses her own experiences to make this novel feel more personal.”—Emily Park, Booklist
In rural Yun Village, herbalist Mrs. Yi lives with her husband in a cottage at the foot of Niulan Mountain, where she gathers herbs to treat the ailments of the villagers by day and studies medicine by night. Sickness and herbs are lovers, she tells her patients, rejoicing when they recover, comforting them when they do not. All the while, she hopes to find a worthy successor to take up her mantle. As curious younger villagers observe Mrs. Yi and begin imitating her work—planting gardens and studying the art of healing—they soon discover that the line dividing life from death is porous, and the mountain is more mysterious than they ever knew.
Drawing on her experiences as a barefoot doctor in her youth, Can Xue returns with a transporting novel that alights in the in-between spaces: between the living and the dead, healer and sick, nature and us.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Can Xue (I Live in the Slums) offers a complex and illuminating portrait of a group of healers in China. Mrs. Yi is the longtime herbalist in Yun Village, where people "don't count the passing years." Her interest in childbirth drew her to her profession, after the death of her own son as a toddler. Her intuitive connection with both herbs and her patients inspires a younger generation of healers. She offers guidance when asked, as the aspirants struggle along their own paths. Gray, Mrs. Yi's occasional assistant and possible successor, must navigate an on-again, off-again love affair that disrupts his studies. Mia, 28, from nearby Deserted Village, deals with her fear of abandonment while trying to grow an herb garden. And for Angelica to realize her potential as an herbalist, she must decipher the secrets of Blue Village, onetime home of Dr. Lin Baoguang, the father of Chinese herbal medicine. Niulan Mountain is an ever-present resource for the healers, providing herbs, edifying mystical adventures, and encounters with reanimated spirits of those who have died. Though the disjointed narrative can be hard to follow, the author still offers profound insights about what it means to pursue and live a fulfilling life. As with Can Xue's previous work, this is both demanding and rewarding.
