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liblibby's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This book is so unlike what I generally read. I tend to stay away from books that take place in fantasy worlds or ancient history or cultures just because it's hard for my brain to take in a story and character development while also understanding this world that's being created--essentially from scratch, to me. That's why I generally stick to stories that are rooted in something similar to my world. This book took place in 1400's China and I'm really surprised that I picked up on it so quickly.
It took me a long, long time to read this book just because I found myself Googling everything. I rarely had a reading session that didn't end in falling down a Google rabbit hole. I learned so much and really enjoyed giving this story my full attention.
This story follows Tan Yunxian from her birth until her mid-life. She was a real person who was born into an elite family and eventually raised by her grandparents--doctors, who trained her in the ways of medicine. Even though women doctors were practically nonexistant at that time.
This book follows her--her deep, longstanding friendship with the local midwife, and all the other women who come alongside her in her life.
I have one main complaint about the book and one 1/2 complaint which contains a spoiler--I'll start with the first. The book is called Lady Tan's Circle of Women but she doesn't even gather her circle of women until the last 40 pages of the book. I wish this book had been named something like "Lady Tan: Women Doctor" or something like that. Because I was looking for female camaraderie and I feel like that really didn't even happen in a satisfying way until the end. And Tan Yunxian lived to be in her 90's--so it's not like she didn't have any more life to draw from.
My last complaint is, honestly, rooted in my 21st century sensibilities:
So much of this book was dedicated to pointing out the inhumanity that women were experiencing at this time in this part of the world. From footbinding to the class system they must live by to the way they're raised to not even look up at the world around them, to the ways so many women were sold into sex work whether they wanted it or not. So much of the book is focused on that, that you expect that when Yunxian is finally at a station where she can make a change to any of it, she would. But she doesn't. She breaks her daughters' feet. She buys concubines for her husband. She even helps a man be sentenced to torture and decapitation because of something that her mother-in-law forced him to do... She's kind to the women around her. She eventually writes a book to help women care for the health of the people in her household--which is no small thing. But I was so disappointed in her character. That being said, I realize that she's a real person who really lived in a world so completely differently from mine. I can not judge her at all. But if there was no interest in addressing these issues, I sort of wish the author had handled the topics differently.
It took me a long, long time to read this book just because I found myself Googling everything. I rarely had a reading session that didn't end in falling down a Google rabbit hole. I learned so much and really enjoyed giving this story my full attention.
This story follows Tan Yunxian from her birth until her mid-life. She was a real person who was born into an elite family and eventually raised by her grandparents--doctors, who trained her in the ways of medicine. Even though women doctors were practically nonexistant at that time.
This book follows her--her deep, longstanding friendship with the local midwife, and all the other women who come alongside her in her life.
I have one main complaint about the book and one 1/2 complaint which contains a spoiler--I'll start with the first. The book is called Lady Tan's Circle of Women but she doesn't even gather her circle of women until the last 40 pages of the book. I wish this book had been named something like "Lady Tan: Women Doctor" or something like that. Because I was looking for female camaraderie and I feel like that really didn't even happen in a satisfying way until the end. And Tan Yunxian lived to be in her 90's--so it's not like she didn't have any more life to draw from.
My last complaint is, honestly, rooted in my 21st century sensibilities:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Infertility, Miscarriage, Rape, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
nehaanna's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Pandemic/Epidemic
fleurdeavis's review against another edition
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
Just felt a bit off-put after researching further into the author. Atmospherically gorgeous, however.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Violence, and Medical trauma
shamzy's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
This was a real page-turner for me. I absolutely loved it. Lisa See’s research into historical facts was incredible!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Misogyny, and Medical trauma
gingoffthehing's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
There are some very detailed medical situations that turned my stomach, but it was an amazing story and I learned so much about Chinese culture and medicine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Classism
lisettemarie's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Torture, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Classism
story_singer_101's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a well-done book that takes the reader into the life and world of 15th-century China--with all its beauty and flaws. I appreciated how this book delved into Chinese medicine and that it didn't shy away from or romanticize the problems that 15th-century China faced. This is a book that deals with topics like foot-binding, concubines, slavery, pregnancy trauma, sickness, and sexism. It is also a book about the humanity of women, the value of female friendships, and the ways that women shine even in highly repressive contexts. I had been looking forward to reading it for a while now, and I'm glad I finally did. It's a well-told story, and I appreciated how the perspectives of the characters didn't seem to be too highly modernized to make it more palatable to a modern audience. That same lack of modernization, though, may cause pretty strong culture shock for some readers, especially if they aren't already aware of some of the cultural practices and issues of the time. So read the book. It's worth it. Just make sure you can handle it first.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexism, Slavery, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Rape, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
author_d_r_oestreicher's review against another edition
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See is a historical novel. It follows Tan Yunxian, a female doctor in 15th-century China, through the four stages of her life from age 8 (milk days) to age 15 (hair pinning days-awaiting marriage) to rice-and-salt days (“the most important years in a woman’s life. They are when I will be busy with wife and mother duties”) and finally sitting quietly days. 15th century China was not a good time for women, even high-ranking women like Tan Yunxian. This was a time of foot binding for high-ranking women and domination by husbands whether she was a wife, concubine, or servant. Lady Tan’s circle of women does their best to support each other in the strange misogynistic world.
For my extended notes: https://1book42day.blogspot.com/2024/09/lady-tans-circle-of-women-by-lisa-see.html
Check out https://amazon.com/shop/influencer-20171115075 for Omega Cats Press books and book recommendations.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See is a historical novel. It follows Tan Yunxian, a female doctor in 15th-century China, through the four stages of her life from age 8 (milk days) to age 15 (hair pinning days-awaiting marriage) to rice-and-salt days (“the most important years in a woman’s life. They are when I will be busy with wife and mother duties”) and finally sitting quietly days. 15th century China was not a good time for women, even high-ranking women like Tan Yunxian. This was a time of foot binding for high-ranking women and domination by husbands whether she was a wife, concubine, or servant. Lady Tan’s circle of women does their best to support each other in the strange misogynistic world. For my extended notes: https://1book42day.blogspot.com/2024/09/lady-tans-circle-of-women-by-lisa-see.html Check out https://amazon.com/shop/influencer-20171115075 for Omega Cats Press books and book recommendations.margaretrose's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Blood, and Medical trauma
celticthistle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Infertility, Miscarriage, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Death of parent