Alice Poon

From the pen of Alice Poon, author of [b:The Green Phoenix: A Novel of Empress Xiaozhuang, the Woman Who Re-Made Asia|36085083|The Green Phoenix A Novel of Empress Xiaozhuang, the Woman Who Re-Made Asia|Alice Poon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1503337386l/36085083._SX50_.jpg|57669596], comes another marvelously written glimpse into a world most of us, Westerners at least, do not know ever existed. Visiting there has felt like a dangerous thrill, for being a woman in this world is not easy. Rushi, Fo, Xiangjun, YuanYuan and Jingli are at the mercy of class divisions, the control of lecherous and powerful men, and the vulnerable world of the courtesan, where a woman’s status can change in a heartbeat and on a whim.

There are brutal moments in each of their lives, tragic losses and moments of despair, but there are also bonds of family between them, a bond which softens the blows and makes life survivable. It is a world in which men rule, and often without feeling, but one in which even the men are tied to the social order.

He was as much shackled by Confucian duties as I was pilloried by social scorn, which sadly arose from the same mountain of milliennia-old class and gender biases.

But, it is also a world where women navigate, contribute and have undeniable influence.

Each of the main characters in this history came alive for me almost immediately. I followed their trials with trepidation and felt the sting of their thwarted loves and their need to submit to the pressures of a life over which they exercised so little control. They begin so young and fragile and learn so much along the journey.

In my naivete I had thought that Zilong’s love would be enough to set me free. I could not be more wrong. My cage was a cage of social scorn. There was no breaking it.

One might think that such a life would engender weakness, but quite the opposite was true. These women display bravery and endurance that only arises from great strength and moral character. They are loyal to one another and to those to whom they owe any kindness; and they show kindness to others, strangers and sometimes people who deserve just the opposite from them.

Jingli’s philosophy, as expressed below, is one that each of us could embrace and be better for having done so.

My child, we are all fellow travelers in this world, and from birth each one is tethered to death, no matter the class or race or gender. So why fetter ourselves with spite toward others?

I found myself in tears toward the end of this book and wondering what these women would think of our easy lives and our often self-imposed lack of connection to one another. I have read many books that profess to depict the lives of women living as Geisha, which is somewhat the equivalent of a Chinese Courtesan. I have never read any depiction as heartwarming as this one, and I was thrilled to find no horrid old woman selling the younger women’s souls, but a sisterhood that was genuine and nourishing instead.

I loved [b:The Green Phoenix: A Novel of Empress Xiaozhuang, the Woman Who Re-Made Asia|36085083|The Green Phoenix A Novel of Empress Xiaozhuang, the Woman Who Re-Made Asia|Alice Poon|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1503337386l/36085083._SX50_.jpg|57669596], but I dare say [a:Alice Poon|1273937|Alice Poon|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1499099844p2/1273937.jpg] has stepped up her game with this novel. She has ripped women from the pages of history, brought them from the past, and breathed life into them. They are unforgettable.

My thanks to Alice Poon and Earnshaw Books for an ARC of this remarkable historical fiction.



… (mais)

When Jingjing finds a memoir written by her mother, she discovers that the world her mother, Rushi and Aunts Yuanyuan and Xiangjun grew up in was cruel and traumatizing. All three women were sold as children to thin horse breeders, or slave traders. They were taught music, art, dance and poetry in order to entertain men who would pay for their company. The women were now objects to be bought and traded as men saw fit. Their lives take many twists and turns, but the sisterhood that they forged with matching kerchiefs helps them through.

Tales of Ming Courtesans is a heartfelt and uplifting memoir style account of the role and treatment of women in 17th Century China. Liu Rushi, Chen Yuanyuan and Li Xiangjun were all real women who were concubines at this time. I was moved by their stories of constant struggle yet determination. Each woman was considered as property and were used by men in different ways, to settle debt, for pleasure or even to hold hostage in exchange for political favor. I was constantly amazed by their perseverance and constant struggle to raise their station. I enjoyed learning about the accomplishments of these women, despite abuse and slavery Rushi excelled at painting and poetry, Yuanyuan played a role in Ming General Wu Sangui's decision to defect to the Qing, Xianjun excelled at the pipa gaining the attentions of Hou Fangyu beginning one of the greatest romances in Chinese History. Tales of Ming Courtesans presents an almost overwhelming amount of information of the lives of these three women. The memoir style of writing was a little rambling for me, often losing my interest for short periods of time before picking up again. There were also large jumps in time. Overall, an insightful and honest look at Ming Dynasty Courtesans.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.… (mais)

The story of Bumbutai (her Mongol name, which is most used in the novel) and her life with the first Qing emperors and court. She lived through the establishment of this conquest dynasty in China, her years 1613-1688.

Wed as a young girl to the conqueror Hong Taiji as part of his alliance with Mongol tribes, her story becomes one of relations among the three peoples: Manchus of the new Qing dynasty, their Chinese subjects, their Mongol neighbours in the north.

Alice Poon envisages Bumbutai as an influence for the integration of these peoples, advocate of a politics that respects and doesn’t upset subjects. From her position as emperor’s wife, mother or grandmother she tries to keep the court clear of corruption and remove futile violence as a strategy.

I don’t suppose we can know exactly how influential such women were. The extent of their input was disguised by the way courts functioned, by the way official history was written – even when they were honoured as significant, like Bumbutai. Poon takes her perspective, through three emperors and a rocky regency. With Bumbutai’s consistency and continuity of message from one period to the next – as she outlives those who possess a more overt power – this royal woman emerges as a guiding hand over Qing’s first three-quarter century.

It was a troubled time, and there is a lot of incident, that reaches the garish and the ghoulish.

At court, figures are seen in different lights, in shifting lights. Bumbutai’s husband, given her at what is child age to us, she cannot love but learns to value; another figure is her passion but his politics takes on an ugly cast. I liked the lack of perfection in characters we sympathise with, and the good points we didn’t expect in those with whom we don’t.

In Chinese history, I find particularly interesting the interplay of ethnicities, which comes to a crunch in the conquest dynasties. So I appreciated this novel about the early strategies of Qing as Manchu invaders. It also de-obscures one of the women whose participation in historical events is still underestimated, because of the way the record works.

I look forward to more from this author, who promises a next novel that centres on a character we met in brief in this one.… (mais)