Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See #bookreview #audiobook

Thank you Simon & Schuster Audio for the ALC and @BookClubFavorites & Scriber #partner,  for the advanced copy of Lady Tan’s Circle of Women in exchange for my honest review. 

Publisher: Scribner / Simon & Schuster ALC

Published: June 6, 2023

 

Summary:

The latest historical novel from New York Times bestselling author Lisa See, inspired by the true story of a woman physician from 15th-century China—perfect for fans of See’s classic Snowflower and the Secret Fan and The Island of Sea Women.

According to Confucius, “an educated woman is a worthless woman,” but Tan Yunxian—born into an elite family, yet haunted by death, separations, and loneliness—is being raised by her grandparents to be of use. Her grandmother is one of only a handful of female doctors in China, and she teaches Yunxian the pillars of Chinese medicine, the Four Examinations—looking, listening, touching, and asking—something a man can never do with a female patient.

From a young age, Yunxian learns about women’s illnesses, many of which relate to childbearing, alongside a young midwife-in-training, Meiling. The two girls find fast friendship and a mutual purpose—despite the prohibition that a doctor should never touch blood while a midwife comes in frequent contact with it—and they vow to be forever friends, sharing in each other’s joys and struggles. No mud, no lotus, they tell themselves: from adversity beauty can bloom.

But when Yunxian is sent into an arranged marriage, her mother-in-law forbids her from seeing Meiling and from helping the women and girls in the household. Yunxian is to act like a proper wife—embroider bound-foot slippers, pluck instruments, recite poetry, give birth to sons, and stay forever within the walls of the family compound, the Garden of Fragrant Delights.

How might a woman like Yunxian break free of these traditions, go on to treat women and girls from every level of society, and lead a life of such importance that many of her remedies are still used five centuries later? How might the power of friendship support or complicate these efforts? Lady Tan’s Circle of Women is a captivating story of women helping other women. It is also a triumphant reimagining of the life of a woman who was remarkable in the Ming dynasty and would be considered remarkable today.

 

My thoughts:

I have long been a fan of Lisa See’s books, ever since reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. I’ve read almost all her books and plan on reading the last two I own very soon.

I love that Lisa’s books are so full of rich historical and cultural detail. This one is inspired by the true story of Tan Yunxian, a woman physician from 15th century China, and we follow her through the four stages of her life – milk days, hair pinning days, rice and salt days, and sitting quietly days. I absolutely love that a woman’s life is broken down into these four stages – so much more poetic than anything we would ever come up with, for sure!

As soon as I started this book, I was immediately transported to the world that Lisa See is able to create with her story-telling. This is a completely immersive reading experience and I loved how descriptive her writing is. From the scenes of how to take care of young girls’ feet as they are going through the foot-binding process to the clothing that they wore during this time-period to even how the concubines co-existed, it is both eye-opening and fascinating.

The book explores the challenges that women faced during this time period. They could have their friendships as long as they were within their own classes, yet they were never seen as equals to their male counterparts. I loved that Yunxian and Meiling’s friendship spanned decades, yet because it was considered forbidden, had its ups and downs. Yunxian is such a memorable character not only for all that she has endured, but also because she basically bucks the system, determined to use her intelligence for good and not be confined societal norms.

I absolutely loved this book and will be recommending it to everyone I know that reads historical fiction, books with strong female characters and of course, is a Lisa See fan!

 

Audio thoughts:

I alternated between the print and audio, though I did most of this by audio and I thought the narrators for this one, Jennifer Lim and Justin Chien, were just fantastic. I was completely immersed in this story and the audio was great for the pronunciations of all the Chinese names.