The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck details the life of Wang Lung, a peasant in 20th-century China. It begins with Wang’s early life filled with hardships, from begging on the streets to having to kill his own daughter. Despite this, he retained a great amount of devotion to the Earth, which would become one of his defining character traits throughout the novel. As he grew richer by luck of the land, many of his family and friends are spoiled by their wealth which subsequently cause him to be troubled. He realizes that no matter how many concubines he takes in and the opium he smokes, he can never really abandon the farmers’ life in which he was brought up. Later in the novel, he begins to retreat into his countryman’s past, ending the circle right where he began. If there is anything the novel is trying to teach us, it’s like the Christian adage, “from dust we are, and to dust, we will return.”

Buck, having lived in China for decades, provides a perspective on life during that time. We see this when she depicts Wang Lung’s lavish pleasures and various imperfections as he grows rich as the story progresses. Another instance in which she is exceptionally meticulous is her account of the sheer human conditions suffered during the famine. There aren’t many other living historical accounts of the past like this, and that’s why The Good Earth is special.

Review by: Jonah

Jonah is a teen volunteer at the Westwood Library. He is a 10th grader at Geffen Academy at UCLA.

—Ruth Chung, Young Adult Librarian, Westwood Branch Library