Pavilion of Women
Written by Pearl S. Buck
Narrated by Adam Verner
4.5/5
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About this audiobook
On her fortieth birthday, Madame Wu carries out a decision she has been planning for a long time: she tells her husband that after twenty-four years their physical life together is now over and she wishes him to take a second wife. The House of Wu, one of the oldest and most revered in China, is thrown into an uproar by her decision, but Madame Wu will not be dissuaded and arranges for a young country girl to come take her place in bed. Elegant and detached, Madame Wu orchestrates this change as she manages everything in the extended household of more than sixty relatives and servants. Alone in her own quarters, she relishes her freedom and reads books she has never been allowed to touch. When her son begins English lessons, she listens, and is soon learning from the "foreigner," a free-thinking priest named Brother Andre, who will change her life. Pavilion of Women is a thought-provoking combination of Old China, unorthodox Christianity, and liberation, written by Pearl S. Buck, a Nobel Prize winner born and raised in China. Few stories raise so many questions about the nature and roles of men and women, about self-discipline and happiness. At the center is the amazing Madame Wu -brilliant, beautiful, full of contradictions and authority.
Pearl S. Buck
Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973) was a bestselling and Nobel Prize–winning author. Her classic novel The Good Earth (1931) was awarded a Pulitzer Prize and William Dean Howells Medal. Born in Hillsboro, West Virginia, Buck was the daughter of missionaries and spent much of the first half of her life in China, where many of her books are set. In 1934, civil unrest in China forced Buck back to the United States. Throughout her life she worked in support of civil and women’s rights, and established Welcome House, the first international, interracial adoption agency. In addition to her highly acclaimed novels, Buck wrote two memoirs and biographies of both of her parents. For her body of work, Buck received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1938, the first American woman to have done so. She died in Vermont.
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Reviews for Pavilion of Women
82 ratings15 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Imagine awakening on your fortieth birthday and deciding that you were through performing for others. Their concerns were no longer yours and from that point on you were going to live the life you always envisioned. That's exactly what Madame Wu, the lead character of Pavilion of Women does. How exciting!I can't count the number of times I've said, "As soon as the kid leaves home, I'm starting life over." Like Madame Wu, I'll be 40 when that happens. Somehow I don't think my decision will have the same consequences.As a mother of four, Madame Wu has been responsible for tending to her elderly mother-in-law, her simple husband, arranging quality marriages for her eldest sons and overseeing the House of Wu, one of the oldest and most respected families in China. Realizing that she has never really loved her husband and has given to those around without realizing any of her dreams, she makes the decision to step aside.When a handsome, foreign priest enters Madame Wu's world, she's pleasantly surprised to find that he may be the perfect person to show her what she's been missing for the first forty years.I'm a big fan of This Good Earth by Pearl Buck, but hadn't ventured any further into her catalog. I'm mad at myself for waiting so long to do so. I loved this story. Madame Wu is a walking contradiction, but her intentions are good. If you're looking for something out of the norm, this is the book for you.
2 people found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pavilion of Women takes place in the early part of the 1900s, somewhere in inland China. Most of the story takes place within the private rooms of the mother of the household, Madame Wu. She is a woman who is indubitably in charge, and so we see her dealing with the characters of her children and their spouses, but the best parts are when she is learning of her own character and dealing with that. Its insights into middle age and a woman's soul were profound and I loved it for that, as well as for the exposure to an old world Chinese home.Narrated by Adam Verner, this is a narrator to look for. I very much enjoyed his reading to the extent that I was not aware of it, only of the story unfolding. I don't think he ever hit a false note.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Woman decides to get her husband a second wife; China. Leaves a lot to think about male-female relationships and female-female. Pearl S Buck is flawed by our standards but we miss a lot if we don't listen to her at all
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The ancient Chinese culture and life customs are so interesting to me, plus specially from a woman’s perspective. Pearl Buck and the narrator of the book kept my attention all the way.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Madame Wu decides on her fortieth birthday to move into her own bedroom and find her husband a concubine. A fascinating look at a strong woman, Madame Wu’s decision has unexpected consequences. Excellent novel.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The beginning of the book was very promising. It is about an elegant Chinese woman educated in the old traditional way. Since she was young, she was taught that women are no more than the ones responsible for making the family grow, thus they must play their roles as the perfect housewives. Madame Wu, the main character, when reaching the 40th year of her life, feels that her role as a "baby generator" is over. However, she still has one thing in her mind: considering that her husband is still young and perfectly able to make more children, she decides to find him a suitable concubine. It's war time and with all the modernities taking place of ancient habits, the decision is imediately considered dreadful. In any other family, it would be unacceptable. Alas, Madame Wu is the supreme wisdom of the house and her words are the decisive ones.
At first, I thought that the story had all the requirements to be great. The main character is a strong women, full of attitude. Even if she's not the head of the house, the Wu family's perfect harmony was due to her decisions. And no one dares to disobey her. All the power is in her hands and, at the same time that she tries to cut her flesh relations with her husband, she keeps the order in the house in such a way that she always have everything under control, including the family members' happiness. Until the day she met a preacherman with whom she becomes quite interested. That's when the story starts to decay. Not because Madame Wu starts to contradict herself. On the very opposite, she keeps the same opinions from the beginning until the end of the book. What changed was the way she got to those conclusions. And that's exactly what didn't please me. I spent more than half of the book trying to understand why the heck did she stop to think in her charming selfish way. I even dare to say that her behavior changes happened from one page to the next one.
This is the kind of book that I read more because I was curious to know how it was going to end rather than because it was actually good. The conflicts are far from exciting, limiting themselves to regular family disagreements. Reading this book was like walking through a regular plain road: you only walk through it to get to the end. It is great when you think of cultural elements and chinese habits. But I've read better books. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5So much is reviled of the Chinese tradition , culture, social structure, witten with admiration, so philosophical and poetical . Pearl Back's books never feil to marvel.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pearl S. Buck always has surprises. I thoroughly enjoy each of her characters. I sit here and listen as I would watching a movie screen. I am transported. Thank You~
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wonderfully narrated and very thought provoking. Will recommend to anyone!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I can’t believe the Chinese customs and Understanding of the culture written here. Plus here is a depth of knowledge and wisdom about life imbedded as well. Pearl Buck has again made a masterpiece!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wonderful story of a middle aged Chinese woman who, after years of devotion and duty to her family, discovers a higher kind of love.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Well, this was deep and meaningful literature... There was story (that moved slowly, characters ( just one developed very deeply), and under and through everything, philosophy. Lots of deep thinking and powerful prose...but it often felt heavy-handed & a bit preachy for me. It was not what I expected, and I am glad I read it, but it's not likely to be one I re-read or recommend much. There were quite a few little gems of wisdom and expression. She is obviously a very good writer with a lot of thoughtful things to say. I am glad that I have finally discovered Pearl S. Buck.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5If you enjoy a side order of screaming at the author with your strong characterization (as with the last third or so of _The Good Earth_), you'll love this book. A gem, as undeservedly obscure as anything else by Buck.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Just love the old China w powerful matrons. So real in current day too
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5On her 40th birthday, Madam Wu sets in motion changes which she thinks will bring her freedom. By bringing a concubine into her household she sets in motion changes which upset the carefully crafted order. This is a commentary on the role of women in turn of the century China, but it more universal than the chosed time or geographic setting. it also raises many questions about freedom, duty, love and happiness.