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Overview
"The slave, called only "Ears," begins his story with the return of the Cao family's young prodigal son, Guanghan, from four years of study in France. Bringing with him a French engineer friend and a dream of converting used machinery into a functioning match factory, Guanghan takes little interest in the bride arranged for him in youth. His new wife's beauty and good heart have not gone unnoticed by Ears, however - nor has her growing closeness to the Frenchman. As Guanghan's Western individualism confronts his mother's devout Buddhism and his brother's grim authority, rumors of clashes between the Qing imperialists and the resistance are quickly becoming bloody reality. Then Guanghan comes under suspicion from the emperor's men, and the outcome will destroy the fragile balance of the Cao household forever."--BOOK JACKET.Synopsis
Liu Heng is one of contemporary China's most acclaimed and masterful writers, and with Green River Daydreams he has written "of the struggle between Western ideas and the old political system, all of it set against a supplely portrayed mountain and river landscape" (NPR's All Things Considered). Ears, the slave of a wealthy landowning family in the early twentieth century, bears witness to its spectacular corruption and decline. The family's prodigal son, Guanghan, returns from four years of study in Europe with a French engineer friend and a dream of starting a collectively run match factory, but has little interest in the bride his family has arranged for him. Her beauty and good heart have not gone unnoticed by Ears, however -- nor has her growing closeness to the Frenchman. Meanwhile, clashes between the Qing imperialists and the resistance are quickly becoming bloody -- and Guanghan's iconoclastic ideas do not remain free of suspicion for long. "[B]oth a coming-of-age story and a chronicle of the clash between forbidden love and duty." -- Publishers Weekly "A richly detailed realistic saga" -- Kirkus Reviews "A masterly blending of character and story in a compelling historical setting.... Highly recommended." -- Tom Cooper, Library Journal (starred review)
Library Journal
In this new work, Liu's second to be translated after the highly acclaimed Black Snow, a talkative centenarian known only as Ears relates his story to an unnamed auditor. Around the beginning of the 20th century, Ears was a domestic slave to the rich and influential Cao family, whose members are so self-involved that they scarcely know how the others spend their days. Only Ears talks regularly to them all and knows that each is heading toward a tragic fate. Though the older brother is fanatical about protecting the family's place in society, the younger brother, Guanghan, becomes involved in the nascent rebellion against the Qing dynasty. When Guanghan rejects his bride from an arranged marriage, she takes solace in the arms of her husband's business associate, a move that accelerates the impending tragedy. Ears remains faithful: he plays the hero at several key junctures, but in the end he cannot avert multiple disasters. The result is a masterly blending of character and story in a compelling historical setting. Goldblatt's rich and evocative translation strives to remain true to the nuances of the original Chinese. Highly recommended for most fiction collections. Tom Cooper, Richmond Heights Memorial Lib., MO Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.