To Live: A Novel and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more



or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering
Sell Us Your Item
For a $1.40 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Start reading To Live: A Novel on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Color:
Image not available

To view this video download Flash Player

 

To Live: A Novel [Paperback]

Yu Hua , Michael Berry
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)

List Price: $15.00
Price: $12.15 & FREE Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $2.85 (19%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock but may require an extra 1-2 days to process.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition --  
Hardcover --  
Paperback $12.15  
Image
Save on Popular Books This Summer
Browse our Bookshelf Favorites store for big savings on popular fiction, nonfiction, children's books, and more.

Book Description

August 26, 2003
An award-winning, internationally acclaimed Chinese bestseller, originally banned in China but recently named one of the last decade’s ten most influential books there, To Live tells the epic story of one man’s transformation from the spoiled son of a rich landlord to an honorable and kindhearted peasant.

After squandering his family’s fortune in gambling dens and brothels, the young, deeply penitent Fugui settles down to do the honest work of a farmer. Forced by the Nationalist Army to leave behind his family, he witnesses the horrors and privations of the Civil War, only to return years later to face a string of hardships brought on by the ravages of the Cultural Revolution. Left with an ox as the companion of his final years, Fugui stands as a model of flinty authenticity, buoyed by his appreciation for life in this narrative of humbling power.

Frequently Bought Together

To Live: A Novel + Red Sorghum: A Novel of China
Price for both: $25.03

One of these items ships sooner than the other.

Buy the selected items together


Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

One man's mythically tragic life encapsulates the horrors of communist China in this nearly overpowering yet vivifying saga. Initially banned in China, internationally acclaimed, made into an award-winning movie, and newly translated into English, Yu Hua's close-to-the-bone tale portrays the reckless son of a wealthy landowner who gambles away the family fortune. Fugui is humbled by the loyalty of his loved ones, and comes to accept the severe hardships of his altered life, but fate has only begun its brutal work. Fugui is forcibly conscripted into the army, then, barely alive upon his release, struggles with so-called land reform and the ensuing famine. As Fugui's family die terrible, often bitterly ironic deaths and this stoic survivor makes do with less and less in an increasingly surreal world, Yu Hua, writing with masterful simplicity about the unfathomable complexities of existence, tells a galvanizing story that is at once a shattering indictment of China's ongoing nightmare and testimony to the tenacity of the human spirit. A translation of Yu Hua's Chronicle of a Blood Merchant is on the way. Donna Seaman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

“A work of astounding emotional power.” —Dai Sijie, author of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress

“Yu Hua is the most profound voice coming out of China today. To Live reaches not only into the very essence of China and the Chinese people but into the blood and bones core of what it means to be a human being.” —Lisa See, author of On Gold Mountain

“A Chinese Book of Job, To Live is a heart-wrenching saga, written with beauty, defiance, and hope. Yu Hua’s books deserve a place on the highest shelf.” —Wang Ping, author of Aching for Beauty and Foreign Devil

“A major contemporary novelist, Yu Hua writes with a cold eye but a warm heart. His novels are ingeniously structured and exude a mythical aura. Though unmistakably Chinese, they are universally resonant.” —Ha Jin, author of Waiting

“A book of subtle power and poignant drama. You love Yu Hua’s characters because they are flawed, vibrant, soulful, and real: you celebrate with them the small wonders of life, and feel their pain as they overcome tragedy. Ultimately, To Live is a redemptive story of the human spirit, one that is universal in its emotional depth.” –Terrence Cheng, author of Sons of Heaven

Product Details

  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Anchor; First Edition edition (August 26, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1400031869
  • ISBN-13: 978-1400031863
  • Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.6 x 8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,733 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Authors

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

The book is touching as a human epic. F Chen  |  7 reviewers made a similar statement
Just be sure to watch the film, as well. D. Knouse  |  5 reviewers made a similar statement
If only the author could have given the reader this idea without dating it! G. Charles Steiner  |  1 reviewer made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful and Cathartic Book October 9, 2003
Format:Paperback
Having decided to make a conscious effort to read modern Chinese literature, this is the first novel I picked up because I had liked the movie. I was not disappointed. Yu Hua tells the story of a Chinese peasant, Fugui, and his struggles beginning during the Chinese Civil War and ending sometime after the Cultural Revolution. The horror and tragedy that Fugui and his family endures is horrific, and through it all, Fugui knows he has one goal...To Live.

I am not sure if it is Yu Hua's writing style or the translation, but the text can be choppy, which is both a positive and a negative. On one hand, it allows passages, thoughts, and emotions to sneak up on you, completely surprising you. One sentence you feel everything is okay, and the next Yu knocks the breath out of you with a blithe mention of tragedy. On the other hand, it seems at times the Chinese should not have been translated so literally, and it can be a hindrance on the rhythm of the novel. For example, where Chinese says "kids", we would say "children", and vice versa. This happens throughout the novel enough to make it clear that this is not written in the language it is intended to be...hence the fifth star is missing.

Before I scare you away from this book with all the talk of tragedy, this story in the end is a hopeful and optimistic one. Fugui's indomitable spirit carries through this theme.

I also found it interesting from a political and hisotorical point of view, as the reader gets to witness, albeit peripherally, a peasants reactions to the chaos surrounding him.

Highly recommended.

Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars To Live - An Amazing Book January 22, 2006
Format:Paperback
"To Live" is a book that's hard to explain. The writing, at first, seems overly simplistic, but as you read, you find yourself carried along by the narrators unvarnished description of events. "To Live" is a book that will make you cry. I finished it in two days, and afterwards I felt like I was a mute, waiting for everything to sink in. That's the mark of an amazing book. Like all of Yu Hua's books, "To Live" is a story that sticks with you long after you close the covers and put it on your shelf.

Be warned though, "To Live" not a book for the faint of heart. This book hits you in the gut. If you don't mind a little literary pain, then "To Live" is more than worth it.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A book that deserves a worldwide readership October 20, 2003
Format:Paperback
This marvelous and touching novel is a timeless family epic that, while written originally for a Chinese-reading audience, is slowly reaching out around the world to readers in English, French and German. It's a book about life, love, family, dreams, the very stuff of what propels all of us, and Yu Hua's magic touch with words is something to behold. You won't forget this kind of book for a long, long time, once you've finished and the publisher deserves some nice kudos for bringing it out in English, finally.
You will see yourself in Fugui and his family, since they are
familiar to all of us in their own way, and it just goes to show how it really is a Global Village after all. All in all, a book for the ages, and especially, for now!
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars Medicore work, lacks depth
A friend of mine in China recommended this book to me, so I read it with high expectations. However, I was disappointed. Read more
Published 1 month ago by FFDR
1.0 out of 5 stars Full of typos
This review is about the product, namely the Kindle, not the author. There is one typo in IN ALMOST EVERY SENTENCE in the very first paragraph of this book alone. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Jimi Page
5.0 out of 5 stars One man's hard yet resilient life
Almost unbelievable job of taking the reader into the life of a common man in China when the country was undergoing drastic change. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Mary Reinert
5.0 out of 5 stars What a tour de force!
What a tour de force! Yu Hua has managed, by using a limited number of words and a simple language, to tell the epic story of Fugui, a well-off Chinese who loses everything - and... Read more
Published 15 months ago by J. Parisse-brassens
2.0 out of 5 stars Shoot the Translator
I can only imagine, reading all the good reviews on this novel, that people have simply overlooked the horrid translation of this novel. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Ravenmaster
5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Old Black Joe and a River of Tears
The author explains in writing at the back of the novel that he listened to an old Negro spiritual about Old Black Joe, a slave and his trials in life, and that this song inspired... Read more
Published 22 months ago by G. Charles Steiner
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome
The characters become more than just players in a game on paper,...they come to life and live in your imagination,..they become your friends and family. Read more
Published on December 21, 2008 by Barry Crawford
5.0 out of 5 stars When fate steps in, living is enough
Fugui Xu is born to a wealthy family in China toward the beginning of the twentieth century. Fugui is the typical rich reprobate as a young man - he has a wife, baby, and elderly... Read more
Published on December 11, 2008 by M. Hudgens
5.0 out of 5 stars Review of "To Live" by Yu Hua
To Live is a uniquely Chinese and very touching description of what life is really like in rural China during the last thirty years or so. Read more
Published on October 17, 2008 by Robert T. Lewis
5.0 out of 5 stars Real Deal
This book is a great read and offers a much more realistic insight into China and Chinese peoples than other Chinese Novels I have read. Read more
Published on August 21, 2008 by Paul B. Trevarrow
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Forums

There are no discussions about this product yet.
Be the first to discuss this product with the community.
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 



So You'd Like to...


Create a guide


Look for Similar Items by Category