Patrick Hanan, New York Times Book Review
"A martial epic with an astonishing fidelity to history, which has been translated now into lively English by Moss Roberts. . . . The subject matter of Three Kingdoms has long held an extraordinary grip on the Chinese imagination. . . . The great achievement of the author . . . was to match historiography with fiction and gain a synergistic effect from the combination of elite and popular tradition."
Three Kingdoms: A Historical Novel. Abridged Edition FROM THE PUBLISHER
Three Kingdoms tells the story of the fateful last reign of the Han dynasty (206 B.C.-A.D. 220), when the Chinese empire was divided into three warring kingdoms. Writing some twelve hundred years later, the Ming author Luo Guanzhong drew on histories, dramas, and poems portraying the crisis to fashion a sophisticated, compelling narrative that has become the Chinese national epic. The novel offers an intimate and unsparing view of how power is wielded, how diplomacy is conducted, and how wars are planned and fought. As important for Chinese culture as the Homeric epics have been for the West, this Ming dynasty masterpiece continues to be widely influential in China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam, and remains a great work of world literature.
SYNOPSIS
Often called the Iliad of China, Three Kingdoms has been a favorite of Chinese readers for over four hundred years. This is the first annotated translation of this epic complete with notes and commentary by the editor of the Chinese version and background information by the translator. Also includes a chronology of main events and a list of principal characters. The first five great works of traditional prose fiction, Three Kingdoms is a story filled with episodes of both love and brutality. Moss Roberts' translation of this, China's most important historical romance, is a true triumph.
Art & Photography
Book Info
