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By: AUCK 009
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2026-03-01 11:02:34 |
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Wow! What a beautifully written book. We talked and talked about Tan Yunxian's World, whilst enjoying Chinese small cakes and green tea, most appropriate for Chinese New Year. Lisa See has so skilfully woven Tan Yunxian's story and the Ming Dynasty, creating a 'must read'. |
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By: TAUR 010
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2026-02-14 14:19:14 |
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Created a great deal of discussion. All enjoyed reading this book. Another Lisa See masterpiece! |
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By: TAUR 049
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2026-02-11 13:58:19 |
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Our group voted this the best read of the year. Excellent writing, great subject matter, and interesting from beginning to end! |
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By: BLENH 007
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2026-02-11 13:57:49 |
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Well researched and well-written. Couldn’t put it down! Such amazing detail. |
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By: WELL 045
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2026-01-13 17:06:06 |
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Well-written, intriguing, inspiring story of intelligence and devotion. |
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By: MATAM 001
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2025-12-03 12:14:17 |
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We found this book a very interesting glimpse into life in 15th century China, and admired Lisa See's extensive research, but the book also had parts that revolted us. The portrayal of Tan and Meiling's friendship was very poignant. |
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By: NAP 011
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2025-12-02 21:59:48 |
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Everyone loved this book (which doesn't happen often!) and we strongly recommend it to other groups. Wonderful novel, well researched and we all learnt so much about a period of China's history and culture. Beautifully written. |
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By: CHCH 447
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2025-11-26 11:48:33 |
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We loved the book. It was a great insight to a time and culture we knew little about. We enjoyed the style of writing, and liked that it was fictional but based on a real person. |
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By: CHCH 037
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2025-10-21 09:58:33 |
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We found this book an engaging and fascinating look at women's lives in 15th century China. It was enjoyed by everyone at our meeting. The author provided lots of material for discussion and is a great storyteller. |
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By: AUCK 224
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2025-10-15 17:11:29 |
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Our group thought the book was fabulous, particularly as it is based around a real woman. Wonderful to learn so much of about cultural China through a well-researched and well-written story. |
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By: TAUR 064
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2025-10-06 15:48:06 |
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Well researched, excellent, fasinating insight into culture and history. |
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By: MAST 005
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2025-08-13 20:36:55 |
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A fabulously interesting read that was well researched and written. The reader was introduced to a very interesting time in China. The highlight was the delving into the medical practices of those times some of which are still relevant still today. |
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By: HAMIL 029
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2025-07-30 10:39:38 |
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We all enjoyed this novel. See creates a fascinating picture of 15th century China and the complex relationships between castes, the position of women in society, the fascination with bound feet, and how Yunxian survives and thrives. The details of medical practices of the times are beyond interesting, like the extraction of worms from a woman, and the understanding of how to prevent fatality from smallpox by variolation. Recommended reading. |
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By: WHAKA 021
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2025-07-23 15:41:21 |
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A captivating and meticulously researched historical novel. It beautifully tells the story of Tan Yunxian, a real-life female physician, highlighting the power of female friendships and the challenges women faced in the 15th century. See brings history to life, a fascinating glimpse into ancient medical practices and cultural customs. It's a thought-provoking and emotionally resonant read – highly recommended for fans of historical fiction. |
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By: NORTH 007
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2025-07-09 14:31:16 |
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A well-written and researched book giving a real insight into the lives of women in all classes from Empress to slaves in China. Fascinating medical information based on the life of a woman doctor living and working during the Ming Dynasty. We found some of the treatment of foot binding, and the punishments, horrific. Some found the print too small so found the audio book great. Very visual and descriptive. |
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By: ROTO 012
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2025-07-07 11:45:58 |
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We all enjoyed the book, though most of us found the small print quite hard. |
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By: HAMIL 074
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2025-06-11 14:47:29 |
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A fascinating insight into Chinese culture we knew nothing about. Initially hard to get into, but worth persevering for a very interesting story. |
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By: AUCK 475
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2025-05-08 11:22:42 |
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We would all give the book a "10". Fabulous. |
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By: AUCK 137
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2025-04-30 13:49:49 |
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Universal applause for this book from our group. There was so much to learn about a time and culture that we have no ability to step into. An inspirational story of women living in 15th century China, made all the better by being based on true life events of that time. A beautifully written book. |
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By: AUCK 414
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2025-04-03 14:48:44 |
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Our group liked this book very much. Flow was good. We needed to concentrate on the relationships. We were captivated. |
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By: AUCK 210
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2025-03-26 13:21:20 |
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A book that was well plotted with believable characters. Fascinating insight into life in 15th century China. Enjoyed by us all which is rare. |
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By: WHANG 022
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2025-03-24 14:11:44 |
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Loved this book's slow pace which suited the restraints on the characters' lives. |
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By: TAUR 004
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2025-03-12 10:22:50 |
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Superbly written and researched. we all loved this book. Historical fiction at its best. Fascinating insight into traditional Chinese medicine. |
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By: AUCK 272
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2024-12-16 13:04:15 |
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Excellent book, best book of the year. Very informative and a great read. |
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