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Tre bröder : minnen av min familj
I Tre bröder berättar den kritikerrosade kinesiske författaren Yan Lianke om sin familj under kulturrevolutionen. I denna intima skildring av uppväxten på den kinesiska landsbygden tar Yan Lianke läsaren med till sitt barndomshem i Henan-provinsen och målar ett levande porträtt av Kina på 1960-70-talen.
Yans föräldrar är så fattiga att de bara har råd att använda vetemjöl på nyårs- och festdagar, Yan drömmer om stekt bläckfisk och längtar efter att lämna byn. Han bestämmer sig för att själv bli författare efter att ha läst på baksidan av en roman att dess författare fick stanna kvar i staden Harbin efter att ha publicerat sin bok.
Yan tar arbete i en cementfabrik, arbetar inte sällan sexton timmar långa pass, och på nätterna skriver han.
Tre bröder är ett levande porträtt av en politiskt förödande period i Kinas historia och en hyllning till familjens förmåga att hålla ihop även under stor utsatthet.
Yans föräldrar är så fattiga att de bara har råd att använda vetemjöl på nyårs- och festdagar, Yan drömmer om stekt bläckfisk och längtar efter att lämna byn. Han bestämmer sig för att själv bli författare efter att ha läst på baksidan av en roman att dess författare fick stanna kvar i staden Harbin efter att ha publicerat sin bok.
Yan tar arbete i en cementfabrik, arbetar inte sällan sexton timmar långa pass, och på nätterna skriver han.
Tre bröder är ett levande porträtt av en politiskt förödande period i Kinas historia och en hyllning till familjens förmåga att hålla ihop även under stor utsatthet.
252 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2009
39 people are currently reading
614 people want to read
About the author
Yan Lianke
72 books483 followersYan Lianke (simplified Chinese: 阎连科; traditional Chinese: 閻連科; pinyin: Yán Liánkē; Wade–Giles: Yen Lien-k'e, born 1958) is a Chinese writer of novels and short stories based in Beijing. His work is highly satirical, which has resulted in some of his most renowned works being banned.
He started writing in 1978 and his works include: Xia Riluo (夏日落), Serve the People (为人民服务), Enjoyment (受活), and Dream of Ding Village (丁庄梦). He has also published more than ten volumes of short stories. Enjoyment, which was published in 2004, received wide acclaim in China. His literature has been published in various nations, and some of his works have been banned in China.
(Wikipedia)
He started writing in 1978 and his works include: Xia Riluo (夏日落), Serve the People (为人民服务), Enjoyment (受活), and Dream of Ding Village (丁庄梦). He has also published more than ten volumes of short stories. Enjoyment, which was published in 2004, received wide acclaim in China. His literature has been published in various nations, and some of his works have been banned in China.
(Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
July 2, 2020
I had earlier read Yan Lianke’s ‘Dream of Ding Village’, a book that left me very keen to read more of this author from China whose writings are deemed provocative by the Government there for his style ofwriting: an almost brooding but serious satire of how things come to be in the country.
‘Three Brothers: Memories of My Family’ is a memoir of the author’s family in the backdrop of the Cultural Revolution with the focus on the lives of Lianke’s father and two of his Uncles in Song County in Henan Province. Trust Lianke to make the writing not merely about his family while taking readers to the abject poverty and the hardships faced by the common people, for he also tells us how political leaderships and the decisions they take do not take into consideration how the people on the ground live with the weight of strict government directives. The impact on the education of young people, the burden placed on rural people caught between poverty and the grinding punishment of work hours if they moved to towns and cities to work in factories are captured in vivid accounts: in the way clothes wear and tear, in the blisters on hands and the way the bodies of young men become bare bones and stooped.
The writing does not confine itself to narrating us stories but is fleshed out well with a peek into the socio cultural norms of filial ties that Chinese society is bound by. The author’s observations on the lives of his father and two uncles and how it leads him to his questions on the nature of life and how it is different from living makes this memoir an intimate journey.
‘Three Brothers: Memories of My Family’ is a memoir of the author’s family in the backdrop of the Cultural Revolution with the focus on the lives of Lianke’s father and two of his Uncles in Song County in Henan Province. Trust Lianke to make the writing not merely about his family while taking readers to the abject poverty and the hardships faced by the common people, for he also tells us how political leaderships and the decisions they take do not take into consideration how the people on the ground live with the weight of strict government directives. The impact on the education of young people, the burden placed on rural people caught between poverty and the grinding punishment of work hours if they moved to towns and cities to work in factories are captured in vivid accounts: in the way clothes wear and tear, in the blisters on hands and the way the bodies of young men become bare bones and stooped.
The writing does not confine itself to narrating us stories but is fleshed out well with a peek into the socio cultural norms of filial ties that Chinese society is bound by. The author’s observations on the lives of his father and two uncles and how it leads him to his questions on the nature of life and how it is different from living makes this memoir an intimate journey.
March 29, 2020
A searingly honest memoir, beautifully written, about growing up in a poor peasant family in central China in the sixties and seventies. The three brothers are the author's father and two uncles.
May 9, 2020
This might be the first English translation I've ever read from a Chinese author, and it's easy to see why Lianke's work is popular in China. His writing (and the wonderful translation) is lyrical and poetic at times, philosophical and descriptive. He writes of growing up in a small rural community, the struggles to survive during the Communist revolution when the land was taken away from the farmers and their crops were seized. He uses the word filial many times to describe the devotion that sons and daughters feel towards their parents and all elders. They have an incredible sense of duty towards their elders, and of course the elders are completely devoted to the welfare of their children as well.
Most startling was the educational system during Lianke's childhood when "advancement to the next grade was based solely on our ability to recite Chairman Mao quotes". Though he was drawn to the city and wanted to be a writer, he felt that his fate, like that of his parents, was to work the land; he couldn't see a way out of that fate which would consign him to poverty. Educated youths were sent from the cities to the countryside to work alongside the peasants, which confirmed that the gap between urban and rural life was far greater than his people had thought. He felt that writing a novel would allow him to escape the land and move to the city for good, and he devoted what little idle time he had to writing.
He wrote extensively about the homes that his father built for his children; three rooms and a tile roof seemed to be the highest aspiration for their futures. His father worked extraordinarily hard to take care of his children and died early as a result. The author stated repeatedly that "one should never forget one's gratitude toward one's parents". The filial bond extended to uncles and aunts as well, and the author described the plight of his father's two brothers - thus the title "Three Brothers".
The book is a testament to the strength of family ties and how much each member is willing to endure to survive and thrive.v
Most startling was the educational system during Lianke's childhood when "advancement to the next grade was based solely on our ability to recite Chairman Mao quotes". Though he was drawn to the city and wanted to be a writer, he felt that his fate, like that of his parents, was to work the land; he couldn't see a way out of that fate which would consign him to poverty. Educated youths were sent from the cities to the countryside to work alongside the peasants, which confirmed that the gap between urban and rural life was far greater than his people had thought. He felt that writing a novel would allow him to escape the land and move to the city for good, and he devoted what little idle time he had to writing.
He wrote extensively about the homes that his father built for his children; three rooms and a tile roof seemed to be the highest aspiration for their futures. His father worked extraordinarily hard to take care of his children and died early as a result. The author stated repeatedly that "one should never forget one's gratitude toward one's parents". The filial bond extended to uncles and aunts as well, and the author described the plight of his father's two brothers - thus the title "Three Brothers".
The book is a testament to the strength of family ties and how much each member is willing to endure to survive and thrive.v
April 25, 2020
From a poverty-stricken rural background, Yan Lianke went on to become one of China’s most acclaimed authors, and this memoir chronicles his early years in the Chinese countryside and his journey to success as a writer. The three brothers of the title are his father and his two brothers, all of whom led an unimaginably harsh life during the 1960s and 1970s. It was a daily struggle to simply survive and the hardships of subsistence farmers and factory workers took their toll. But what Lianke pays tribute to in this moving memoir is how the three brothers devoted their efforts to supporting the family, ultimately making it possible for Lianke himself to leave their hardscrabble existence to move away and turn himself into a writer. The book is a powerful portrait of China during these turbulent years. The poverty is almost beyond imagining. This isn’t the only memoir I have read about China during these difficult times, and the story is always the same. How somehow people did survive against all the odds and gradually saw an easier life come to them. The importance of family is key at all times and Lianke obvious feels great respect for the older generation and how hard they worked to keep the family alive and together. The book is an extraordinary portrait of China, heart-rending at times, but never bitter, and although I didn’t feel that it added anything new to an already crowded field, it still made for some powerful reading.
August 31, 2024
This was an incredible incredible book. Maybe even my favorite book of all time now. The tone was so tender and the relationships were so deep and poignant… I cried. Also, being able to understand more about life during the Cultural Revolution was so meaningful to me. So glad I picked this book up in Lello. <33
February 11, 2020
This is a wonderful book, and a very good translation. Wonderful insight into the everyday life of rural China during the Maoist Revolution. A loving tribute to the authors forefathers. I found it quite engaging.
December 15, 2020
Not infrequently, I'm drawn to a book for one reason and then I find myself enjoying it for a completely different one. The appeal here was a promised memoir of peasant life during the Cultural Revolution in China. Strictly speaking, that's exactly what you get.
But first and foremost, this is a heartfelt family-focused memoir, centered around the author's illiterate father and two uncles, almost completely absent any reference or awareness of the systemic influences on their struggles. Yan escaped his impoverished rural life, thanks to a voracious appetite for reading and a skill for writing. Any hint of political awareness is oblique, but there is plenty of social awareness. To Yan, a rural adolescent, his role models are simultaneously exalted pillars of strength as much as fates to be avoided. The translation for his family life used throughout the book is "peasant" – a word we'd never use for contemporaries today even for the most impoverished Appalachian families – but when looking at the stories through a wider lens, the word isn't incorrect.
Every day, First Uncle's family would wake up in the morning before dawn and travel to the river more than ten li away, where they would go to the gully on the other side of the river to collect stones. After collecting the stones they would ford the waist-deep water to return to their side of the river, and would then sell the stones to the state work units. Each day they would make two round trips – setting out each morning when the night sky was still full of stars and returning home each night when the sky was once again full of stars. Apart from the Lunar New Year and periods where there was a lot of farm work. First Uncle and his family proceeded like this, day after day, year after year. In all, they continued like this for three years, their own version of China's Three Years of Natural Disasters.
The men in Yan's father's generation were pack mules and peddlers. The story here is one of generational change and geographical inequity. To be a rural patriarch in that era was to struggle, and to do so in an environment that would offer them little personal reward and render their own values obsolete.
My father's generation struggled tirelessly for food, clothing, and housing. They struggled to build their sons their own three-room, tile-roofed houses. But now, those adobe-roofed and tile-roofed houses have gone out of style – like trees that become old and shriveled before they have a chance to become fully grown. Those houses were like children of fallen aristocrats, standing in a modern city, recalling their former lives.
Yan does little to conceal his feelings throughout. The memoir is colored by the fact that he waited to write this when he was older. He regularly alludes to his own past failings in understanding and appreciating his father's generation and their struggles. And he nicely walks a line, expressing admiration and even reverence for his elders while at the same time concealing little of their moral failings.
The most compelling history is probably that of Fourth Uncle, a man who struck out to escape the rural poverty trap by becoming, in essence, a migrant laborer. He spent his working years away from his family, working for a construction company, and his relative success in obtaining a better income made him an idol for young Lianke. Fourth Uncle was the first page of that book I wanted to open. Fourth Uncle was also the first page of the happy life for which I yearned. But Fourth Uncle struggled every bit as much as his brothers, not only with earning enough money, but also in shouldering the burdens of both urban and rural life, belonging to neither place.
Yan's own eventual escape from rural poverty – the luxury that he was able to tell this tale in the first place – likely compounds his own feelings of regret and guilt about the struggles of these men. Yan is writing about ghosts in more ways than one.
Ultimately, through the histories of these three brothers, we do get a picture of the powerlessness endured by a generation of Chinese men during this moment in history. This is not a political book, but the political and economic forces that constrained the family are evident to any reader. And the structure of the memoir, to delve into the lives of each brother, is effective. If there is a failing here, it's the unabashed omission of any female perspective. In any world where the men are powerless, you had better believe the women are even more so.
I also rather enjoyed the writing. I can imagine the difficulty of translating from the Chinese, a language distant enough from English to present styles and idioms that have no clear parallel (a brownish-purple fear). Sometimes the literal translations don't fly (The train station was as cold and empty as a barren field, but the tracks stretched into the night like a pair of fried dough sticks.) but that just goes with the territory. A book can only go so far to put ourselves in the shoes of a people and culture so remote from our own perspective, but that is always a struggle worth pursuing. In that light, it's wonderful that a book like this is translated and distributed in English. Lianke's father and uncles would be amazed that I read about their lives.
But first and foremost, this is a heartfelt family-focused memoir, centered around the author's illiterate father and two uncles, almost completely absent any reference or awareness of the systemic influences on their struggles. Yan escaped his impoverished rural life, thanks to a voracious appetite for reading and a skill for writing. Any hint of political awareness is oblique, but there is plenty of social awareness. To Yan, a rural adolescent, his role models are simultaneously exalted pillars of strength as much as fates to be avoided. The translation for his family life used throughout the book is "peasant" – a word we'd never use for contemporaries today even for the most impoverished Appalachian families – but when looking at the stories through a wider lens, the word isn't incorrect.
Every day, First Uncle's family would wake up in the morning before dawn and travel to the river more than ten li away, where they would go to the gully on the other side of the river to collect stones. After collecting the stones they would ford the waist-deep water to return to their side of the river, and would then sell the stones to the state work units. Each day they would make two round trips – setting out each morning when the night sky was still full of stars and returning home each night when the sky was once again full of stars. Apart from the Lunar New Year and periods where there was a lot of farm work. First Uncle and his family proceeded like this, day after day, year after year. In all, they continued like this for three years, their own version of China's Three Years of Natural Disasters.
The men in Yan's father's generation were pack mules and peddlers. The story here is one of generational change and geographical inequity. To be a rural patriarch in that era was to struggle, and to do so in an environment that would offer them little personal reward and render their own values obsolete.
My father's generation struggled tirelessly for food, clothing, and housing. They struggled to build their sons their own three-room, tile-roofed houses. But now, those adobe-roofed and tile-roofed houses have gone out of style – like trees that become old and shriveled before they have a chance to become fully grown. Those houses were like children of fallen aristocrats, standing in a modern city, recalling their former lives.
Yan does little to conceal his feelings throughout. The memoir is colored by the fact that he waited to write this when he was older. He regularly alludes to his own past failings in understanding and appreciating his father's generation and their struggles. And he nicely walks a line, expressing admiration and even reverence for his elders while at the same time concealing little of their moral failings.
The most compelling history is probably that of Fourth Uncle, a man who struck out to escape the rural poverty trap by becoming, in essence, a migrant laborer. He spent his working years away from his family, working for a construction company, and his relative success in obtaining a better income made him an idol for young Lianke. Fourth Uncle was the first page of that book I wanted to open. Fourth Uncle was also the first page of the happy life for which I yearned. But Fourth Uncle struggled every bit as much as his brothers, not only with earning enough money, but also in shouldering the burdens of both urban and rural life, belonging to neither place.
Yan's own eventual escape from rural poverty – the luxury that he was able to tell this tale in the first place – likely compounds his own feelings of regret and guilt about the struggles of these men. Yan is writing about ghosts in more ways than one.
Ultimately, through the histories of these three brothers, we do get a picture of the powerlessness endured by a generation of Chinese men during this moment in history. This is not a political book, but the political and economic forces that constrained the family are evident to any reader. And the structure of the memoir, to delve into the lives of each brother, is effective. If there is a failing here, it's the unabashed omission of any female perspective. In any world where the men are powerless, you had better believe the women are even more so.
I also rather enjoyed the writing. I can imagine the difficulty of translating from the Chinese, a language distant enough from English to present styles and idioms that have no clear parallel (a brownish-purple fear). Sometimes the literal translations don't fly (The train station was as cold and empty as a barren field, but the tracks stretched into the night like a pair of fried dough sticks.) but that just goes with the territory. A book can only go so far to put ourselves in the shoes of a people and culture so remote from our own perspective, but that is always a struggle worth pursuing. In that light, it's wonderful that a book like this is translated and distributed in English. Lianke's father and uncles would be amazed that I read about their lives.
April 16, 2022
Minirecension: Tre Bröder handlar om Yan Liankes familj och uppväxt i 70-talets Kina. Han skildrar landsbygden och fattigdomen, där inget förskönas men samtidigt beskrivs med ett sådant poetiskt språk att man nästan får dåligt samvete. Det handlar om honom, som fick gå i skolan och sedan blev soldat, men vars stora dröm egentligen var att skriva. Det handlar om uppväxten, men det handlar också om hans far och hans två farbröder, som alla hanterade livet så olika men som kämpade för att senare generationer skulle få det bättre.
Jag gillade verkligen denna memoar! Den påminde om Annie Ernaux, om Édouard Louis, men vi fick lära oss mer om kulturrevolutionen och hur livet var för bönderna i Kina strax innan allt plötsligt moderniserades. Jag gillade språket. Jag gillade hur personerna porträtterades. Jag gillade att Lianke vågade visa sina mindre smickrande sidor. Allt kändes mänskligt.
Jag gillade verkligen denna memoar! Den påminde om Annie Ernaux, om Édouard Louis, men vi fick lära oss mer om kulturrevolutionen och hur livet var för bönderna i Kina strax innan allt plötsligt moderniserades. Jag gillade språket. Jag gillade hur personerna porträtterades. Jag gillade att Lianke vågade visa sina mindre smickrande sidor. Allt kändes mänskligt.
April 18, 2020
A detailed reflection on the austere conditions governing daily life in rural China, “Three Brothers” is a heartrending memoir by one of China’s most celebrated authors.
April 11, 2020
Beautifully written account of three brothers seen through the eyes of a son and nephew. Lianke is one of China’s acclaimed novelists and the story of his two uncles and his father in rural China from the 60’s to the present day is an emotional and powerful story.
July 19, 2024
I am still in the process of reading one of Yan Lianke’s other books, but I truly appreciate his perspective. I think reading his memoir really helps me understand where he is coming from and how impactful his books are.
Separated into multiple parts, the book talks about his life and upbringing (without much information about his time in the army, sadly), before then backtracking to focus on his father and his selflessness compared to his medical condition, his father’s older brother (First Uncle) and his kindness compared to his gambling addiction, and his father’s younger brother (Fourth Uncle) and his difficulties living part-rural and part-“outside”. Each chapter is broken up into smaller parts, recounting different occurrences in Lianke’s memory, which he then dissects to ponder about suffering in life, the impact of dignity, and the fickle nature of fate.
However, the main theme in the book revolves around how the rural upbringing in China and the different lives each of the “brothers” went through to make a living in China as subsistence farmers trying to provide for their families.
It is both tragic and heartwarmning, with plenty of moments that make you consider the existential nature of life, contemplating our own existence in comparison to his family members, who grew up with filial piety and the notion of “goodness”—showering others with kindness, which Lianke hopes he too can personify in his own life. I think the one passage I will always remember is how when First Uncle visited him in Kaifeng, he cooked him a meager dish of fried egg over rice, but First Uncle considered it the best meal he’s ever tasted.
There are so many other moments of how his family helped him succeed and moments that he cherishes or remembers:
• His elder brother donating blood for a transfusion for their elder sister since he didn’t want anyone in their family donating blood
• His second sister giving up her spot in high school so he could go instead.
• Fourth Uncle refusing Lianke from working as a porter.
• Fourth Uncle giving him the polyester shirt, then he gives it back 3 years later when Fourth Uncle needs to go to a wedding and his “nice shirt” hasn’t dried yet.
• His Father carrying all the ginger stones from the hill to build a house, then wading into the freezing water despite it exacerbating his asthma, to lob stones for two additional stones.
And while there are instances where Lianke discusses the vices of these men, he does so to provide dimension, showing that not everyone is perfect.
For a translation, I also found it was well done. I found Lianke’s imagery compelling and the descriptive writing well-transcribed. The only difficulties I found were trying to follow dates and timelines, as the story is told somewhat non-linearly. Furthermore, there were a lot of details that Lianke left out, so we only have a small snapshot, but there is so much more I would love to learn!
Separated into multiple parts, the book talks about his life and upbringing (without much information about his time in the army, sadly), before then backtracking to focus on his father and his selflessness compared to his medical condition, his father’s older brother (First Uncle) and his kindness compared to his gambling addiction, and his father’s younger brother (Fourth Uncle) and his difficulties living part-rural and part-“outside”. Each chapter is broken up into smaller parts, recounting different occurrences in Lianke’s memory, which he then dissects to ponder about suffering in life, the impact of dignity, and the fickle nature of fate.
However, the main theme in the book revolves around how the rural upbringing in China and the different lives each of the “brothers” went through to make a living in China as subsistence farmers trying to provide for their families.
It is both tragic and heartwarmning, with plenty of moments that make you consider the existential nature of life, contemplating our own existence in comparison to his family members, who grew up with filial piety and the notion of “goodness”—showering others with kindness, which Lianke hopes he too can personify in his own life. I think the one passage I will always remember is how when First Uncle visited him in Kaifeng, he cooked him a meager dish of fried egg over rice, but First Uncle considered it the best meal he’s ever tasted.
There are so many other moments of how his family helped him succeed and moments that he cherishes or remembers:
• His elder brother donating blood for a transfusion for their elder sister since he didn’t want anyone in their family donating blood
• His second sister giving up her spot in high school so he could go instead.
• Fourth Uncle refusing Lianke from working as a porter.
• Fourth Uncle giving him the polyester shirt, then he gives it back 3 years later when Fourth Uncle needs to go to a wedding and his “nice shirt” hasn’t dried yet.
• His Father carrying all the ginger stones from the hill to build a house, then wading into the freezing water despite it exacerbating his asthma, to lob stones for two additional stones.
And while there are instances where Lianke discusses the vices of these men, he does so to provide dimension, showing that not everyone is perfect.
For a translation, I also found it was well done. I found Lianke’s imagery compelling and the descriptive writing well-transcribed. The only difficulties I found were trying to follow dates and timelines, as the story is told somewhat non-linearly. Furthermore, there were a lot of details that Lianke left out, so we only have a small snapshot, but there is so much more I would love to learn!
October 3, 2021
An interesting memoir about the author who was born into a peasant family in China and grew up during the country’s Cultural Revolution of the ‘60s and ‘70s. Honoring and revering his immediate and extended family are everything to him.
The “Three Brothers” story is ostensibly about his relationships with his father and two paternal uncles, but many more family members are essential to his passage from young boy to adulthood. Written originally in Chinese and translated into English, it is not an easy read. I often had to think about passages and reread them to ensure I gained full understanding.
I really enjoyed the author’s writing so reverently and lovingly about the importance of family. This was a politically tense time of massive hardship and scarcity, and they survived by supporting and sacrificing for one another. As hard-working peasants, family members lived day-to-day struggling to obtain enough food to fill their bellies, which was rarely achieved. In addition to never enough food — shelter, clothing, medicine, and education were all extremely scarce.
The peasant lifestyle is juxtaposed with “city people” who seemingly lead much easier and richer lives. The author eventually winds up in the city to learn it too requires hard work to survive.
There are many philosophical reflections where I paused to deliberate privileged American existence in comparison to the shocking conditions experienced by the Chinese during these terrible times.
The “Three Brothers” story is ostensibly about his relationships with his father and two paternal uncles, but many more family members are essential to his passage from young boy to adulthood. Written originally in Chinese and translated into English, it is not an easy read. I often had to think about passages and reread them to ensure I gained full understanding.
I really enjoyed the author’s writing so reverently and lovingly about the importance of family. This was a politically tense time of massive hardship and scarcity, and they survived by supporting and sacrificing for one another. As hard-working peasants, family members lived day-to-day struggling to obtain enough food to fill their bellies, which was rarely achieved. In addition to never enough food — shelter, clothing, medicine, and education were all extremely scarce.
The peasant lifestyle is juxtaposed with “city people” who seemingly lead much easier and richer lives. The author eventually winds up in the city to learn it too requires hard work to survive.
There are many philosophical reflections where I paused to deliberate privileged American existence in comparison to the shocking conditions experienced by the Chinese during these terrible times.
February 3, 2021
This is a good memoir, although the prose isn't really my style (kind of flowery, a lot of philosophical introspection). I'm not entirely sure what the author wants the reader to take away, but for me I just really enjoyed reading about the Cultural Revolution era through the experiences of this one young man and his relationships to his father and two uncles. I read this as a document bearing witness to the massive changes in Chinese society, particularly in rural areas, on a micro scale. The author doesn't address the policies and macro economic shifts at all, but maybe because I'm a sociologist these were always in the back of my mind as I read about the course of the author's early life and his male relatives' late lives. The book is pretty sad in a lot of ways, and it really made me appreciate the endless toil and struggle that poor rural peasants endured at the time.
July 3, 2020
I learned a lot about China in the 70s and 80s. The poverty of Lianke's extended family living in the country side was shocking and sad. For all their daily toil, they earned less government work points than someone working in a factory. I was surprised that fathers built their sons houses (3 room houses) for them to marry. This was a matter of pride. One of his uncles hauled stones and boulders with his family through an icy river during wintertime for house construction. Lianke's desire to write started from a young age and was a seed he nourished.
August 19, 2021
This book gives the Western world a point of view that is not much publicized: that of someone who actually works/worked in the government (author was a cadre) and came from the countryside. It was fascinating to see how someone in the country viewed the urbanites exiled out to his community for re-education vs the usual narrative of dissidents. But outside of that, this is also an intensely personal story about his family members and their travails. Some parts, especially about parents and children, made me cry. A short and beautiful book, well worth the read.
November 10, 2022
3.75
Thoughtful meditations on life v living, fate, the approach of death, and truly beautiful sparse bursts of prose
Occasionally self-applauding:
Yan claims too much personal influence in the lives of his family — guilt for “causing” the death of his father, pride at irreversibly shaping the lives of others with just a word or gesture.
Over-romanticization of rural illiteracy (1st brother)
Really nice to hear the other perspective of上山下乡运动 — previously have only heard of it from the 知识青年 aka 下放青年 side
Thoughtful meditations on life v living, fate, the approach of death, and truly beautiful sparse bursts of prose
Occasionally self-applauding:
Yan claims too much personal influence in the lives of his family — guilt for “causing” the death of his father, pride at irreversibly shaping the lives of others with just a word or gesture.
Over-romanticization of rural illiteracy (1st brother)
Really nice to hear the other perspective of上山下乡运动 — previously have only heard of it from the 知识青年 aka 下放青年 side
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 21, 2020
This English language nonfiction debut one of Chinas most highly regarded writers, winner of the Franz
Kafka Prize and twice finalist for the international Booker Prize.’Three Brothers’ is a beautiful and memoir of the authors childhood and family life during the Cultural Revolution. Author #Yan Lianke paints a vivid portrait of rural China in the 1960s and ‘70s chronicling his childhood and festival days. A career in the Army ultimately allows Yan to escape village life.
Kafka Prize and twice finalist for the international Booker Prize.’Three Brothers’ is a beautiful and memoir of the authors childhood and family life during the Cultural Revolution. Author #Yan Lianke paints a vivid portrait of rural China in the 1960s and ‘70s chronicling his childhood and festival days. A career in the Army ultimately allows Yan to escape village life.
November 6, 2022
Tre bröder är en bok om fyra människoöden där författaren beskriver sitt liv, sin fars liv och hans farsbröders liv. Boken ger en inblick i hur livet kunde se ut den kinesiska landsbygden, under 1950-2000-talet. Det som framhävs som mest är skillnaden mellan staden och landsbygden på alla olika plan. Den första delen som är självbiografisk är den absolut bästa, de andra håller inte samma kvalitet.
May 10, 2020
This book is the story of life in China through the author’s eyes, his life and that of his family and their relationships. There is a lot of emotion in this book as the author describes the poverty, death, addictions and life in general. It’s very well-written and translated from Chinese, it flows well and has a nice steady pace. It was an interesting and educational read.
December 26, 2021
Jag uppskattade denna bok, även om det inte är något jag skulle rekommendera vidare.
Jag uppskattade inblicken in i det senare 90-talets kina. Det var fint att få lösa om en familjerelation.
Boken var något upprepande och alldeles för packad med metaforer och analogier för min smak. Ibland kändes det lite för krystat.
Men allt som allt är fin bok.
Jag uppskattade inblicken in i det senare 90-talets kina. Det var fint att få lösa om en familjerelation.
Boken var något upprepande och alldeles för packad med metaforer och analogier för min smak. Ibland kändes det lite för krystat.
Men allt som allt är fin bok.
April 20, 2023
“If ‘living’ is a blade of grass, then ‘life’ is a beautiful flower, and if ‘living’ is a single tree, then ‘life’ is a verdant park in the center of the city. When our society considers life, accordingly, it is always careful and meticulous, but when it considers the process of living, is approaches it extravagantly and arbitrarily, chopping away like a hatchet”
September 22, 2021
I love learning about China, especially the 1950s - 1990s. I've been fascinated since I read "The Good Earth" as a little girl (yes, that was from a much earlier point in time). So this book accomplished that - adding to my understanding of China, though it was a bit ponderous for my taste.
October 12, 2023
informative
We learn much about life in China but the author’s retrospection becomes tedious at times. I appreciated his desire to convey the hardships of life for the peasant and the extreme sacrifices that they all made but sometimes the reading became laborious.
We learn much about life in China but the author’s retrospection becomes tedious at times. I appreciated his desire to convey the hardships of life for the peasant and the extreme sacrifices that they all made but sometimes the reading became laborious.
May 15, 2024
This book provides a great look into the lives of a rural peasant family during the Cultural Revolution who actually supported Mao. The translation from Chinese to English can be slightly confusing at times, but definitely worth the read for a different perspective.
September 1, 2025
Amazing memoir and I usually don't like biographies. It is very well written and a good snapshot into another culture and time and level of hardship that many of us cannot even imagine. It makes you ver grateful for what you have
December 26, 2025
前段时间翻看纽约客知道了阎连科，又在图书馆看到了这本家族传记。关于外公外婆那一辈人的生活和过去我其实是很没有概念的，只知道他们年轻的时候非常得不容易，但那印象是虚无缥缈的，参杂着历史书里干瘪的甚至有些故意模糊的描述。书里对父辈三兄弟一生的描写给我展现了一个陌生的中国：很残忍，很苦，但又很坚强。中国社会亏欠农民太多太多，从过去到现在，一直在牺牲他们（城市真的是变态的吸血鬼），在可以预见的未来这种牺牲也一直在延续。生活还是活着，有时候并不能自由地去选择。
July 11, 2020
humble, honest memoir of one family in China during and after the cultural revolution, describes disorienting lives leaving countryside for city and then returning. 3.7
November 4, 2020
Read for my book group, but having never read any of his fiction and not having any connection to him as an author I’m afraid this fell flat for me.
December 12, 2022
Okej, spännande första delen när det var fler politiska inslag
February 24, 2023
2.5 stars.
It was a sad book. I read it because I was interested in rural life in Kaifeng.
It was a sad book. I read it because I was interested in rural life in Kaifeng.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews