All Men Are Brothers / Shui Hu Chuan [Paperback]

Shi Nai'an (Author), Pearl S. Buck (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 2004

This translation of a Chinese classic (14th Century) is the epic tale of a band of patriots in China during the latter part of Sung Dynasty and is considered by most to be one to the three or four greatest novels in Chinese literature. Shui hun chuan (water margin chronicles) is the adventure of a band of 108 outlaws (105 men and 3 women) struggling to help the Emperor rid himself of the despotic prime minister. Like Robin Hood, the bandit kings refer to themselves as the "gallant fraternity." They come out to harass the authorities and to attempt to solicit followers to overthrow a corrupt government in the name of the Emperor. Chocked full of ghosts, innkeepers who make hamburgers of their guests, giants of superhuman strength, beautiful women in distress, wily intellectuals and crafty merchants, this is a timeless tale of love and adventure.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Pearl Buck's renerding of All Men Are Brothers is, of course her finest work and a classic of American prose." -- --Kenneth Rexroth

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Chinese

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Product Details

• Paperback: 658 pages
• Publisher: Moyer Bell; Tra edition (February 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559213035
• ISBN-13: 978-1559213035
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #84,968 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #11 in Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > Chinese
  • #40 in Books > Literature & Fiction > History & Criticism > Asian

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brian Wayne Wells, Esquire, reviews "All Men are Brothers", May 17, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: All Men Are Brothers (Hardcover)

Nobel Prize winner, West Virgina born, Pearl S. Buck is primarily known for her novels on her childhood and early life in China. However, her 1933 translation of the Chinese epic story of a band of patriots in China of latter part of the Sung Dynasty, struggling to help the emporer rid himself of the despotic Prime Minister, became popular again with release in 1990 of the Japanese developed software game--Bandit Kings of Ancient China by KOEI Corporation.

The epic story took place about 100 years prior to time of Robin Hood. But the story contains many parallels to the story Robin Hood. Just as Robin and his merry band hid in the woods of Nottingham and, in the name of Richard III against the usurping King John, robbed the rich to help the poor, so too did the bandit kngs live as outlaws from the authorities in the "water margins" (marshes) of Sung Dynasty China coming out only to harass the prime minister's troops and attempt to solicit followers to overthrow the corrupt prime minister in the name of the emporer.

The two volume set is a splendid read and helps the reader understand more about the Chinese government and culture in the eleventh century.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A terrific read from beginning to end, January 5, 2007

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: All Men Are Brothers / Shui Hu Chuan (Paperback)

Originally published as two 700-page volumes, Pearl S. Buck's translation of Shi Napan (1290-1365) and Luo Guanzhong's (1330-1400) Chinese martial arts novel "All Men Are Brothers" is now available in a new single volume edition from Moyer Bell. This 600 year-old epic tale of a band of patriots in the latter part of the Sung Dynasty is the story of a band of 108 outlaws 9105 men and 3 women) who struggle to help the Emperor rid himself of a despotic prime minister. Also involved in this work of classical Chinese fiction are ghosts, innkeepers who augment their groceries with the bodies of their guests, giants with superhuman strength, lovely ladies in distress, wily intellectuals, crafty merchants, and more! A sage replete with sorcery, action, beats, demons, and heroes, "All Men Are Brothers" is a terrific read from beginning to end and a very highly recommended addition to academic and community library collections!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gem of ancient Chinese literature., June 13, 2011

By 

Isaac Ho (Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: All Men Are Brothers / Shui Hu Chuan (Paperback)

I had read this Shui Hu Chuan or as translated by Pearl S. Buck: ALL MEN ARE BROTHERS several times.
The title is based on a saying by Confucius: "Among the four seas, all men are brothers. How can the gentleman bemoans that he is without one?" I bought the bound volume way back in 1959. Pearl S. Buck has done an excellent in translating this famous book of the Chinese. Reportedly, all the Chinese leaders are fond of this work. This work is based partly on fact and partly on imagination of the original author: Shi Nai An. In those days of Shi, tales of Shui Hu Chuan were told and retold at popular teahouses where the folks gathered to drink tea and for a few copper coins would listen attentively to the storyteller's retelling of the story from his prompt books. Then the author gathered all these prompt books and assembled them after editing into bookform as we are able to enjoy it today.
This story is the awesome adventures of the one hundred and eight martial heroes and the book have been translated into several foreign languages, notably Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese. I had personally saw a Korean translation of Shui Hu Chuan in a Korean book shop in Canada. In 1995, the CCTV or China Central Television successfully made a 43-episode docudrama of this famous novel and the depiction of the actions of the heroes are excellently done. Each episode last about 45 minutes and the TV drama is available on DVD but unfortunate the subtile is not yet available in English for Western viewers!
The Shui Hu Chuan (Shui means water, while Hu is lake and Chuan means story)is the first martial arts novel in both China and the world. Historically, there is a vast reedy marshed lake in the interior of Shandong Province and there the heroes gathered to fight several great battles with the corrupted and decadent Emperor and his officials in the troubling days of the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD.I highly recommend Pearl S. Buck's excellent translation to all readers of Amazon.com. Pearl did a line by line translation and her English was written in such a way that when a Western reader reads the novel, it would appears that he or she is reading the version in Chinese...so expertly does Pearl S. Buck has rendered her translation way back in the 1930s. Finally, the Shui Hu Chuan is considered one of the ten classical literature that China has ever produced, preserved and existed to the present day.
The other great Chinese literary works are: Romance of the Three Kingdoms (San Kuo), Dream of the Red Chamber (Hung Lou Meng), The Scholars (Yu Lin Whai Shi), Journey to the West (Shi Yu Chi), The Golden Lotus (Chin Peng Mei), Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio (Liao Chai), and The Western Chamber (Shi Shang Ki). All of these great works of Chinese literature have been rendered into English as well. Cheers!