Pearl Buck in China

I recently signed up for a review program for audio books, and the first one I received was Pearl Buck in China. I have to say, I really enjoyed listening to this biography of an early 20th century missionary daughter who became a famous fiction writer later on in life. Although I came to understand that Pearl Buck's life is quite famous, I had never heard of her, nor had I read any of her books.  So I really enjoyed the opportunity to learn about her life, and the events that shaped her vision of life and ultimately led to her writing some of the most influential books about China of the early 20th century, including The Good Earth.

I think that one of the reasons I enjoyed this book was because I too grew up on the mission field, although not in Asia! I found Pearl's life very interesting, as she dealt with the strangeness of being American in China, and being not quite American in America. She struggled all her life with fitting in, with only a brief period in her teen years where she was popular and content. Later in life, once her books made her famous, she was in high demand, but always struggled with relating to the society she was writing for.  She experienced so much sadness and loss in her life, but all of these things shaped her into the writer she was destined to become, and her books have touched people for decades.

The audio book itself is very well done. It is broken into chapters, each averaging about an hour to and hour and a half. The author, Hilary Spurling, does an excellent job reading the book, speaking in a very clear, unhurried manner that makes it easy to understand. At times her British accent is a bit distracting, as the pronunciation of a few words is so completely different from American pronunciations, but overall I had no trouble understanding her. The biography is well written and well researched, and was a very interesting "read!"

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this audiobook free from Oasis Audio as part of their Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.