- Audio Cassette
- Publisher: Audio Literature (February 1996)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0787109290
- ISBN-13: 978-0787109295
- Product Dimensions: 17.8 x 10.5 x 3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 191 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #2,262,281 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
The grace, passion and fidelity to historical detail that characterized her bestselling novel, Spring Moon, and the stark evidence of the suffering of contemporary Chinese that rendered her nonfiction Legacies so compelling, are combined in Lord's new novel, which authoritatively illuminates the travails of 20th-century China. In 1932, three youngsters from different social strata vow to remain forever "blood brothers of the Middle Heart." Steel Hope, scion of the noble but impoverished House of Li; Mountain Pine, his lame "bookmate" (study companion) and servant; and Firecracker, the daughter of a gravekeeper, are to endure and share lives of turmoil and pain, loyalty and love. When the three meet again in 1940, Steel Hope plans to marry Firecracker, now an opera star named Summer Wishes, but as an innocent pawn in a web of administrative corruption, he soon must fake his own death and vanish, surfacing later as a cadre in Mao's revolution. Scholarly Mountain Pine, who also adores Summer Wishes, eventually weds her; later, Mountain Pine will make a supreme sacrifice, ensuring that their son will think of Steel Hope as his father. The vicissitudes of Mao's reign bring them prosperity, then misery: one is sentenced to a labor camp, another to a political prison and the third to forced-labor. While the love triangle ensures the reader's emotional involvement, Lord also vividly portrays the historical and social context of seven decades. She conveys the breakdown of moral order under Chiang Kai-shek's corrupt Guomindang, recalls the idealism that made the intelligentsia ardent adherents of the Communist Party; and depicts the growing disillusionment, paranoia and sheer horror of the ensuing years under Mao. Despite their tragic experiences, the three friends and lovers live out their life spans; the sacrifice is their shared son, who lacks the nurturing memories that keep his elders alive. Though it culminates with the crackdown at Tiananmen Square, the novel ends on a note of affirmation, in keeping with Lord's humane vision of courageous people who are victims of history. 100,000 first printing.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
YA?Steel Hope, second son of the once-powerful House of Li; Mountain Pine, his crippled servant and '"bookmate"; and Firecrackers, a gravekeeper's daughter who disguises herself as a boy, form an unlikely friendship during the years of turmoil in China of the 1930s. Their paths diverge as China descends into chaos and war. Firecrackers becomes Summer Wishes, an opera singer who learns to hide her fears and perform with bombs falling close by; Steel Hope is an engineer and bureaucrat who joins the communist underground to fight the Japanese and puts loyalty to the revolution above all else; Mountain Pine becomes a writer and a hermit, but learns he can't run away from his feelings. War, revolution, the vagaries of Communist rule, and family loyalties test the friendship of the three, and their final reunion is bittersweet. Lord brings her knowledge of China and her gift of storytelling to this tale of friendship and love set against the backdrop of modern history. YAs will glimpse a different culture and enjoy a gripping story of the triumph of the human spirit.?Molly Connally, Kings Park Library, Fairfax County, VA
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Chinese Culture,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Middle Heart (Hardcover)
I have to say that this book greatly described how the Chinese Revolution affected the people and the country in general. I also have to say that this book is better appreciated if you know about the revolution IN DETAIL. I also have to make a comment that I don't think the people who read the previous reviews knew much about what happened in China in the early 20th century. The compassion in the book is real and the events more. I read this book at the beginning of 8th grade...which means I read it before I turned 14 and I think this novel deserves better appreciation than people gave it.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Captivating,
By A Customer
This review is from: Middle Heart (Paperback)
It might be judged sentimental, perhaps even labelled wooden and contrived. But I found it nonetheless to be a great read. Bette Bao Lord manages to create an emotional universe in which her characters are not only believable and their fates compelling, but also tells a story which is touching in the way good stories should be.
4.0 out of 5 stars
a true story of friendship,
By A Customer
This review is from: Middle Heart (Paperback)
It is a love stories with many twists and turns. The story is of lasting friendship but is very tragic. The characters were well developed that created a realistic atmosphere. This novel is accurate in depicting the "Liberation" of China. I would recommend this book for any one who is a fan of historical fiction. Beautifully written.
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