Empress Orchid - by Anchee Min (Paperback)

About the Book

From a master of the historical novel, "Empress Orchid" sweeps readers into the splendid heart of the Forbidden City to tell the fascinating story of a young Chinese concubine who becomes China's last empress.

Book Synopsis

The beloved classic that turned Carson McCullers into an overnight literary sensation and one of the Modern Library's top 20 novels of the twentieth century.

"I love this book! It's a great, great read and not hard at all." -- Oprah Winfrey

In a Georgia mill town during the 1930s, an enigmatic deaf-mute, John Singer, draws out the haunted confessions of an itinerant worker, a doctor, a widowed café owner, and a young girl. Each yearns for escape from small town life, but the young girl, Mick Kelly, the book's heroine (loosely based on McCullers), finds solace in her music.

Wonderfully attuned to the spiritual isolation that underlies the human condition, and with a deft sense for racial tensions in the South, McCullers spins a haunting, unforgettable story that gives voice to the rejected, the forgotten, and the mistreated--and, through Mick, gives voice to the quiet, intensely personal search for beauty.

Featured in Oprah's Book Club 2004

Review Quotes

powerful and brilliantly conceived Booklist, ALA, Starred Review

[an] absolutely addictive book, a marvel of perfectly executed narrative The Baltimore Sun

An exotic tale filled with historical insight, richly transporting in its details, and compelling to the end.
O, The Oprah Magazine

fascinating reading The San Francisco Chronicle

While the historical research impresses, Min's prose brings immediacy to the period. (Critic's Choice) People Magazine

nervously riveting and oddly beautiful. The reader...can end up gasping for breath.
The Star Tribune

renders a beautiful description of a world where ritual is elaborately detailed The Denver Post

keeps you riveted with heart-wrenching scenes of desperate failure and a sensuality that rises off its heated pages.
Elle

a stirring, exotic novel that is a treat for the senses and intellect alike.
Los Angeles Times

Readers who appreciate well-crafted fiction will know to applaud Min's talent and exceptional work.
Orlando Sentinel --