Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See

Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See

*NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!*

From "one of those special writers capable of delivering both poetry and plot" (The New York Times Book Review) an immersive historical novel inspired by the true story of a woman physician in 15th-century China--perfect for fans of Lisa See's classics Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane.

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, 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 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? A captivating story of women helping each other, Lady Tan's Circle of Women is a triumphant reimagining of the life of one person who was remarkable in the Ming dynasty and would be considered remarkable today.

Shanghai Girls, Peony in Love, Snow Flower and the Hidden Fan, Flower Net (an Edgar Award nominee), The Interior, and Dragon Bones are among Lisa See's New York Times bestselling novels. She penned the libretto for the Los Angeles Opera's production of On Gold Mountain and acted as curator for the Autry Museum of Western Heritage's On Gold Mountain: A Chinese American Experience exhibit, which was also shown at the Smithsonian Institute. She was voted National Woman of the Year in 2001 by the Association of Asian American Women. She currently resides in Los Angeles.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781982117092
Title	Lady Tan's Circle of Women
Author	Lisa See
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Simon & Schuster
Year published	2024-06-11
Number of pages	368
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.