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    To Live: A Novel
    To Live: A Novel
    To Live: A Novel
    Audiobook8 hours

    To Live: A Novel

    Written by Yu Hua and Michael Berry

    Narrated by David Shih

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    From the author of Brothers and China in Ten Words: this celebrated contemporary classic of Chinese literature was also adapted for film by Zhang Yimou.

    This searing novel, originally banned in China but later named one of that nation's most influential books, portrays one man's transformation from the spoiled son of a landlord to a 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 gritty authenticity, buoyed by his appreciation for life in this narrative of humbling power.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    TranslatorMichael Berry
    Release dateAug 29, 2017
    ISBN9781541482913
    To Live: A Novel

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    Reviews for To Live

    4/5

    128 ratings12 reviews

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    • 5/5
      thanks to grant at contra gentiles now im crying and love life
    • 4/5
      Plain and simple, but maybe a very deep story of a poor Chinese man who survives a series of tragedies mixed in with bits of good luck (and humor) here and there.
    • 3/5
      Fugui was the spoiled son of a wealthy landowner--until he lost most of his property through gambling debts. This novel follows his decline (or perhaps his rise) from selfish landlord to kind and satisfied peasant.This book of "Chinese history through the life of one man" has also been called a Chinese Book of Job, as one calamity after another afflicts Fugui and is family. I picked it up years ago after seeing the very good movie of the same name based on the novel. While I'm glad I read the book, I didn't find that it added much to the movie.3 stars
    • 5/5
      Phenomenal. Brilliantly told with language that's simultaneously gut-wrenching and terse.
    • 4/5
      I thought the book was really unique. I liked the simple narration, and the way the author was able to give a clear impression of the historical eras and Chinese culture through the narrator despite the simplicity. You have to be able to bear a lot of tragedy to enjoy this book, though. Not sure whose fate was the worst.
    • 5/5
      A beautiful book and one I couldn't put down once I started reading it.
    • 3/5
      A sad thing happens. Then another sad thing happens. Then another sad thing happens. Repeat until novel is complete.

      With such a structure it's exceedingly easy to inspire sadness in the reader- doing so demonstrates no skill on the part of the author. Frankly, by the end the misfortunes became predictable, detracting from whatever minor emotional impact they might have had. I also found the message of the novel, that life goes on despite loss and misfortune, to be a fairly obvious one.

      Maybe read this one if you are easily emotionally manipulated and want to feel sad.
    • 5/5
      Almost unbelievable job of taking the reader into the life of a common man in China when the country was undergoing drastic change. Fugui begins life as a privileged son but his life evolves into one of hardship and sorrow interspersed with tiny drops of hope and joy. The ability of the author to depict the everyday life of the Chinese peasant in the countryside is extraordinary. Despite a different time period, there is some similarity to "The Good Earth" by Pearl Buck, but with Fugui as the narrator the story becomes even more personal.I must admit I had a bit of trouble getting into the book and felt the wording or phrasing seemed awkward in places. The format of Fugui telling his life story to a man collecting popular folk songs seemed strained. Once into Fugui's story, I was totally immersed into his life. Only once or twice does the listener (the folk song collector) interfere and then it seems so appropriate allowing the reader to see Fugui as another would see him: "the old man's dark face smiling in the sunlight was quite moving. The wrinkles on his face moved about happily." The happiness on Fugui's face tells so much after the reader has heard his life story. In short, this is a look at a man who accepts the life that was handed him; there is no whining, no second guessing, none of our Western world's internal angst and second guessing. It's a good book and one that should be read.
    • 4/5
      To Live is the story of Fugui, an old man whom the unnamed narrator encounters while travelling around the countryside studying the folk songs and tales of the area. As a young man, Fugui came from a relatively wealthy family, but he managed to lose all of his family's property through gambling and carousing. Having brought his family down, he decides to devote himself to being a good husband and father. However, fate intervenes, first in the case of the war between the Communists and the Nationalists, into which he is conscripted. Having survived that, he returns home only to see the upheaval caused by the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. Yet, despite all this and the tragedies within his own family, he perseveres. It's a poignant account of one man's life in upheaval, which also has the feel of a Taoist parable about facing hardships.
    • 5/5
      This fiction seems a little bit dramatic to me, it’s just because what happened to the main character were too cruel to be true. However life is unpredictable, so I just tried my best to enjoy this book. The main character, Gui Fu, he used to have a lot of fortune and a happy family, but he had had become poor because he was addicted to gambling. Later he lost his whole family due to the war. In the end, after Gui Fu lost everything, he finally understood the true essence of life and showed us how to live happily while suffering from the pain. Hua Yu described an idea through this book, which is life is short, hence a person should not live with a huge concern only about career, fortune or fame and forget to appreciate life itself. Because one never knows when life will tear apart by the tragic things and one should always prepare for the courage to live. (Read in the original Chinese, Huo Zhe.)
    • 5/5
      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 parents, but this does not stop him from spending all his time in whorehouses and gambling halls. Fugui does not even bother to keep track of his losses until one night, when Fugui learns he has squandered his family's considerable fortune, land, and home. The family must now transition from a life of affluence to that of the poorest farmers. Before long, this devastation is revealed to be a blessing, however, when the revolution occurs and landlords are executed - Fugui is very aware that the man he lost his fortune to has been killed in his place. As communism is established and decades pass for Fugui who, despite the political and social upheavals of this time, is primarily concerned with his family. They face hardships and tragedy, wanting not their previous fortune or political power, but just to live.Quote: "Fengxia would often pull me by the hand and ask, 'Dad, a table has four corners. If you shop off one corner, how many are left?' I don't know where Fengxia had heard this, but when I said three corners, Fengxia would smile ear to ear and laugh uncontrollably. She would say, 'Wrong! There are five corners left!'"Grade: B+Review: To Live is a classic work of the unrelentingly sad variety. The main character finds that when fate takes everything else away from you, living is enough. I liked this work because all though it is set in a political and historical context, the reader for the most part is only subtly aware of it - the context impacts the lives of the characters, but Fugui is not much concerned with communism or democracy or reform - he is concerned with the next harvest, not with who is in power in China. For a man living through the civil war between the Nationalists and the Communists, land reform, the Great Leap Forward, and the Cultural Revolution, Fugui has no political leanings to speak of. He does not generally blame his misfortunes on those in power, even when their choices impact him and his family so negatively, but rather chalks his circumstances up to fate. An interesting, fairly brief look at one man in China, living through (and despite), some of the biggest upheavals in the nation's recent history.
    • 5/5
      A charming novel with depth that belies its simple prose and structure. Yu captures the tragedy and the determination of 20th century China through this story of a man who loses everyone he loves yet continues to press on with life. Zhang Yimou's movie also is compelling but the details and setting of the novel strike me as more authentic. Highly recommended.