The Promise: A Novel of China and Burma

Why the romance about the forbidding jungles of Burma? After Chamal’s NEVER SO FEW, I began to understand a little of how it might be. So, when I happened across this book by Pearl S. Buck I was prompted to read it for more than one reason. Firstly, to my chagrin, I’d never read Buck before. I’ve driven past her family home in W. VA, and I’d seen the Hollywood version of the GOOD EARTH, but that was it. I actually thought of her as some sort of Grandma Moses of literature. But, boy was I wrong.THE PROMISE is a great book. The prose is what caught me first of all. Without paying attention, while reading, I found myself propelled through her story on the wings of her simple and natural prose. And then there was the perspective, her perceptive, almost instinctive, understanding of the Chinese culture and of Asia itself. In particular, her dressing down of colonial and brutish British (and American) attitudes toward ‘others’: “We could be free if you did not think it your duty to save us.” This is a timeless book: “Now what is there to tell of a journey such as theirs” she asks. No one could tell it better than Pearl S. Buck.

The Promise, a novel by Nobel Prize-winning author Pearl S. Buck, was originally published in 1943. It is a sequel to Buck's 1942 novel Dragon Seed, but the publisher of the ebook edition gives no indication of this whatsoever. Only after I began reading the book did I realize, "Hey, I already know all these characters." It's important to note because if you haven't already read Dragon Seed you'll be lost in chapter one. Dragon Seed described the 1939 Japanese invasion of eastern China, as told through the eyes of Ling Tan and his family, who live in a village outside Nanking. The Promise opens in 1941. The family is still living under Japanese occupation. One son, Lao San, who goes by the name of Sheng in this novel, has left home and is battling the invaders as a freedom fighter.The Promise referred to in the title is explained in chapter one. The people of Mei and Ying promised to come to the aid of China if they were ever attacked. Now the Chinese people are waiting and hoping that these two great nations will live up to that promise. Mei is America and Ying is England. Sheng leads a military expedition into British-occupied Burma to help the Brits repel the Japanese invasion there. While in Burma, the Chinese forces are commanded by an American, who may or may not be based on a real historical figure. As she typically does, Buck writes this historical novel with almost no specific proper nouns. For example, Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Chinese military, and his wife are referred to simply as the Ones Above. Nevertheless, despite the deliberate obscurity, the reader does get an education into this lesser-known campaign of World War II. Told from a Chinese perspective, the story depicts the Americans and Brits as well-intentioned imperialists whose racist attitude toward their Asian subjects leads to the needless loss of human lives.Stylistically, Buck's writing is like a cross between the socially conscious realism of the early 20th century, like The Grapes of Wrath and The Jungle, and the romantic television miniseries of the 1970s, like The Thorn Birds or Rich Man, Poor Man. Her novels are intelligent, moving, and skillfully crafted, with just a hint of sweet, sticky sap flowing beneath the surface. Still, those with a tolerance for romanticism will not only not mind this aspect of Buck's work but will in fact come to enjoy it. This sequel is actually superior to its predecessor. Dragon Seed was marked by an uncomfortable inconsistency. The first half of the book consisted of brutally realistic depictions of war crimes, while the second half was all rosy optimism. The Promise proceeds on a much more even keel, rarely resorting to either extreme, and the book is better for it. Though it lacks the shocking, indelible scenes of atrocity that punctuate Dragon Seed, The Promise is a thoroughly engaging saga that convincingly conveys the stirring urgency of the life and death struggles of wartime. The final chapter is a bit weak, but not enough to discount the strength of the book as a whole.Buck is best-known, of course, for her House of Earth trilogy, consisting of The Good Earth, Sons, and A House Divided. Could Dragon Seed and The Promise be the beginning and middle volumes of another trilogy? Though I've found no evidence to support this theory, given the ending of this book and the title of her next novel, China Flight, I suspect this is the case. After the experience I had reading this book, I certainly wouldn't be surprised if Ling Tan and his family show up unannounced in another of Buck's books.

This sweet, innocent novel is an eloge of China, its traditional values, and of loyalty and trust that its leader at the time, Tchang Kai Chek, deposited in the Allies. The love story that permeates the pages of the novel and infuses it with a precious touch presents some of the tension between East and West, that is magnified in the bloody Burma campaign. The English wanted to retain their colony, the Chinese thought that they could block the Japanese assault in the South and receive badly needed equipment and weapons. The brave soldiers succumbed to the enemy and the help promised by the Allies to the Chinese never came.There is a communist, Charlie, and Pearl is sympathetic to his cause. She could not predict the bloodbath that future conflicts and confrontations would bring. Chen's sister is an innocent child and Pearl finds her a loyal boyfriend in Charlie.In the end, we are left in suspense: will Mayli and Chen marry? Will Jade leave her inlaws, exchanging them for the freedom of their children?This novel, like the trilogy I read before, starting with The Good Earth, presents humans subjected to portentous changes that tear their lives apart. However, Pearl always keeps the flame of love alive, the eternal romantic.

It is a very interesting narrative of historical importance. Coming as it does from a great writer it is unputtable. One feels a part of the history unfolding before one's eyes. The book is recommended for any fan of the author. Also, whoever is seriously interested in the unfolding of WWII. Simply great indeed.

If you have ever walked amid a tropical forest you will be reminded of the experience through Buck's narrative.Though love is always the underlying thread, the politics of war is the main issue in this novel; therefore, the prose is less poetic.

Always love Pearl Buck's books and this one was no exception. Great read learned more about WWII and China and Burma/England than I have known.

This book like all Pearl Buck books, was hard to put down. Although it is a book about war, the stories of the people were interesting. I’m always impressed with how deeply she understood the Chinese people, and the way they thought of other ethnic groups.

old reading like Dickens. But if your into it go for it.

Although I have read eleven of Pearl S. Buck's wonderful books since 2017 and loved all of them but this one, I now know why I didn't enjoy the story. I did not read the Dragon Seed which apparently precedes this book and introduces some of the characters just like Good Earth which was book one in a trilogy. That series I couldn't put down. But because the book opens so abruptly naming people whom I should have known but didn't, I was a little lost and found the beginning of the book unconnected to the rest of the story. Then without the context of when the plot was taking place (during WWII), I had to consult the internet and search the history of Burma to find the connection to China. When that became clear I enjoyed parts of the story but found that even though it was taking place during a war and there were graphic descriptions of injuries and wounds, I kept waiting for the heroine, Mayli, to meet up with her likely love interest, Sheng, making it a sort of romance novel. Not my favourite genre. But fortunately there was more to it than that. After so many battles, death and destruction, I couldn't wait for it to end. And when it did end, it just stopped without clearing up some major plot stories. I guess there may be another trilogy since so much was left unsaid. I'll have to go through all Buck's listed books again and see if I can find out, but I'm not sure if I want to meet up with these characters again anyway.

I had read a book by Pearl Buck over 50 years ago and likes it so I read this book . It shows how the Chinese army was involved in the War with Japan in the 30s and 40s. The Chinese army walked or marched into Burma to help the US and British armies and the story tells of the hardships encountered. There was also a bit of romance and different classes of people and their reactions to the War. A good tale about history.

Prompt service. Book as advertised and in excellent condition. Thank you!

good read

Exciting and interesting to delve into the old world of Chinese culture. Recommended to all readers of history and culture.