As with all of her books, Min - like Buck before her - exposes the cruel, isolating existence that China's rulers inflicted on much of the country's population during the different decades that the two women lived there. “ Pearl of China is a loving tribute to Buck and a unique peek into the hearts and lives of the Chinese people who knew her. “In those moments, when human emotions transcend cultural and geographical borders, Min echoes Buck's talent for showing compassion and empathy toward her characters, and like her, reveals the power and dignity contained in the lives of ordinary people.” - Associated Press Buck's extraordinary life delivers profound psychological, spiritual, and historical insights within an unforgettable cross-cultural story of a quest for veracity, compassion, and justice.” - Booklist, (starred review) In this ambitious and moving new novel, Anchee Min brings to life a courageous and passionate woman who loved the country of her childhood and who has been hailed in China as a modern heroine.“ Min, a prime example of an indomitable Chinese woman, has made it her mission to reveal the truth about the lives of women in China, including Madame Mao, Empress Tzu Hsi, and now Buck … Ardently detailed, dramatic, and encompassing, Min's fresh and penetrating interpretation of Pearl S. And yet, through love and loss, heartbreak and joy, exile and imprisonment, the two women remain intimately entwined.

Willow, despite close ties to Mao's inner circle, is punished for her loyalty to her 'cultural imperialist' friend. But when civil war erupts between the Nationalists and Communists, Pearl's family is forced to flee the country ahead of angry mobs. Moving out into the world together, the two enter the intellectual fray of the times, confide their hopes and dreams, and survive early marriages gone bad. Buck, the Nobel Prize-winning writer and activist, but for now she is just a girl embarrassed by her blonde hair and enchanted by her new Chinese friend. Pearl is the headstrong daughter of zealous Christian missionaries. Willow is the only child of a destitute family.

In the small southern town of Chin-kiang, in the last days of the nineteenth century, two young girls bump heads and become thick as thieves.

Pearl of China by Anchee Min