dragons village - a autobiographical novel of revolutionary china
Worth buying if: You appreciate village-level detail and scenes of land reform.
Skip it if: You want a detached political history rather than Chen's intimate recollections.
Exact edition: Paperback · ISBN-13 9780140058116. The Amazon link uses this ISBN, so the product page should open to the edition shown here.
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Summary
This autobiographical novel by Yuan-Tsung Chen follows a childhood and coming-of-age in a rural Chinese village as political upheaval — land reform, party campaigns, and wartime scarcity — reshapes family, loyalty, and belief.
Why this book now
Revisit Chen's 1981 Viking memoir-novel to understand personal dimensions of China's revolutionary decades as historical debates and cultural memory resurface.
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Best for readers who...
Good fit if you want...
- You appreciate village-level detail and scenes of land reform.
- You read memoir-novel hybrids about China’s revolutionary era.
- You want a detached political history rather than Chen's intimate recollections.
- You prefer strictly fiction without autobiographical grounding.
- You need the newest edition, freshest examples, or the most current framing.
Decided it fits?
Exact edition: Paperback · ISBN-13 9780140058116
Worth buying if: You appreciate village-level detail and scenes of land reform.
Skip it if: You want a detached political history rather than Chen's intimate recollections.
Check Amazon for the current price and availability of this exact edition.
Reader guide
Cues to help you decide faster.
Reading commitment
Light Short sit-downs
At about 285 pages, Dragons Village asks for moderate attention: expect scene-rich chapters and reflective passages that reward steady reading over several evenings.
What stands out here
This Viking edition foregrounds Yuan-Tsung Chen's voice and on-the-ground village episodes, emphasizing lived experience over sweeping academic analysis.
Best way to approach it
Read slowly through Chen's descriptive village vignettes to absorb social details and return to the book's political passages for context and contrast.
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Paperback: ISBN-13 9780140058116
Check Amazon for the current price and availability of this exact edition.