From the author of Three Souls and Dragon Springs Road comes a captivating historical novel in which a convoy of student refugees travel across China, fleeing the hostilities of a brutal war with Japan “Myths are the darkest and brightest incarnations of who we are . . .” China, 1937. When Japanese bombs begin falling on the city of Nanking, nineteen-year-old Hu Lian and her classmates at … Nanking, nineteen-year-old Hu Lian and her classmates at Minghua University are ordered to flee. Lian and a convoy of students, faculty and staff must walk 1,000 miles to the safety of China’s western provinces, a journey marred by the constant threat of aerial attack. And it is not just the refugees who are at risk; Lian and her classmates have been entrusted with a priceless treasure: a 500-year-old collection of myths and folklore known as the Library of Legends.
The students’ common duty to safeguard the Library of Legends creates unexpected bonds. Lian becomes friends and forms a cautious romance with the handsome and wealthy Liu Shaoming. But after one classmate is arrested and another one is murdered, Lian realizes she must escape before a family secret puts her in danger too. Accompanied by Shao and his enigmatic maidservant, Sparrow, Lian makes her way to Shanghai in the hopes of reuniting with her mother.
During the journey, Lian learns of the connection between her two companions and a tale from the Library of Legends, The Willow Star and the Prince. This revelation comes with profound consequences, for as the ancient books travel across China, they awaken immortals and guardian spirits who embark on an exodus of their own, one that will change the country’s fate forever.
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Beautifully written. Not being familiar with Chinese folklore, I found the story fascinating and so interesting !
This is a gorgeous novel, a unique blend of historical fiction, based on Ms. Chang’s family stories about the second-Sino Japanese war, with mysticism and folklore. The storytelling is enchanting. The book, due to its broad scope, is told in an omniscient point of view with multiple POVs.
I knew very little about this particular war going into the story but gained greater insight into Chinese history. The novel begins in Nanjing, China 1937. As Japanese bombs fall on the city, students and faculty at various schools are evacuated 1000 miles west to the city of Chengdu. The students of Minghua University, including Hu Lian (the protagonist), are led by their revered teacher Professor Kang. In addition to supervising the students, King must ensure the safety of one of China’s national treasures, a set of encyclopedias known as the Library of Legends which contains ancient myths and folklore collectively. The moving of the encyclopedia awakens various immortals and guardian spirits who have a year to return to the world of the immortals. Couched against the traumatic background is a romantic love triangle between Hu Linn, the hero Liu Shaoming, and the other “woman”, an immortal named Sparrow Chen,
As I enjoy reading myths and legends, I liked Chang’s incorporation of actual Chinese folktales and the one she invented, The Willow Star and the Prince, which runs through the narrative and which is indistinguishable from real ones. The genre-bending adds a distinctive flare.
This is a magical realism based on a real story that happened when Japan invaded China during WW2. A group of college students moved an ancient library to safety. I loved this story. It was so well told!
Magical!
“Myths are the darkest and brightest incarnations of who we are.” The Library of Legends was the first book I ordered with my Book of the Month subscription. The bright colorful cover caught my attention right away. This historical fiction takes place during the Second-Sino Japanese war and follows a group of university students as they traverse China to find safety. The story focuses on the group of students and faculty that are entrusted with ensuring the safety of the Library of Legends, a collection of Chinese myth, legends, and folklore.
The third person author jumps between several main characters, giving the reader multiple perspectives. The story is very well written, and is enjoyable and easy to read. I did find myself getting some of the names of cities/towns and characters mixed up, especially when I first began reading. I found the characters to be somewhat flat. There was very little character development in the story and the little that did happen was very abrupt and unrealistic. Based on the synopsis of the book, I expected much more supernatural/mystic involvement and characters.
Overall, I enjoyed this book. It wasn’t quite what I was expecting, but read through it in a matter of days. Chang is a wonderful storyteller, with likeable characters, complex interactions, and beautiful detail. 3.5 Stars
Hu Lian is studying at the Minghua University, a dream, she never thought would happen. Her mother is hundreds of miles away, and Japan decides to start dropping bombs on China. The year is 1937 and the Second World War has finally reached China. They had heard word of bombings and war in other countries, but so far had not felt the affects.
One morning when she is out, bombs are dropped and she takes cover with a family in their bakery. She comes out not able to hear anything and covered in white flour, but she is safe. As she gets outside, she sees that there is smoke, fire and destruction everywhere. As her hearing starts to come back, she sees someone she recognizes from school, Liu Shaoming. Shaoming and his servant help Lian get back to the university.
A decision has been made, those who are left at the university will leave in groups and help to transfer the Library of Legends with them, on their journey to safer land further inland. Hundreds of miles away, they will walk and try to get transport here and there if they can. But they are not only running to protect their lives, they are also in charge of protecting the Library of Legends, which isa five-hundred year old collection of myths and folklore. This is history in their hands, and cannot be lost to the ruins of a war.
As the students and their teachers take this journey, they are each given so many of the books to keep in their possession and to read to keep up with their studies along the way. It is quite the undertaking and they are met with many barriers to get over, as well as the constant fear of a bomb dropping on them.
Shaoming occasionally reaches out to Lian on the journey to pass the time with intellectual discussions about different things and Lian is doing her best to not let feelings get in the way. She doesn’t want to read too much into Shaoming, and besides he is of a higher family than her, and she knows of other girls who also have their eye on him. Then she is forced into getting even closer to him to make sure he is not going down a wrong path of politics and if she doesn’t agree, her secret will be revealed. This secret will most certainly get her removed from school, and will shame her mother and put them in danger.
As Lian does her best to keep an eye on Shaoming, another girl causes trouble and there is then a murder that happens. And others are also taken for questioning. Lian is now fearful of her life, and is afraid if she doesn’t find a way to find her mother and warn her, that something may happen to her. Lian lets Shaoming in on her secret, and the two of them with his servant decide they are going to make a run for it and head to Shanghai.
I really enjoyed this novel, and the folklore that she wound into the story with the Library of Legends. Based on the true story of Chinese universities making an exodus during the war, they were looked at as the future of the country and could not risk being sent to war. It was very interesting to read, and I had no idea this happened. It is always interesting reading about different countries and what they were dealing with during WWII.
Disclaimer: This review will contain SPOILERS.
Reading The Library of Legends transports the reader into war torn China in the late 1930s. The books description hints at this being a romance, however, it’s really not. There’s loss, trauma, longing, intrigue, and the perseverance of the heart. Throughout this story you’ll feel as if you’ve trudged along countless miles of land, experienced the itchy-vermin infested-sleeping quarters that were so common for refugees, been plagued simultaneously by the pangs of hunger and longing for your family. These are the uncertain and difficult times through which Lian, Shao, and their classmates, professors, and fellow refugees had to endure.
The subject matter of this book certainly isn’t light. Lian’s only just left her university to return home to her mother when Japanese bombers attack. So, she and fellow student, Shao, return to the college to await its evacuation rather than attempt to travel home on their own. The last group of students who are evacuated with the school are entrusted with the care of a collection of books known as the Library of Legends.
This responsibility adds weight to the already perilous journey that they’re embarking upon. Yet the students feel as if they’re being looked after by the Gods to have been entrusted with these precious tomes. None of the students are aware that one of the legends walks among them in the form of a servant girl. Sparrow, The Willow Star, is servant to Shao, her prince. Shao has no memory of their extensive history or once great love. Sparrow has bargained with the Queen Mother of Heaven who allows the Star to accompany the Prince throughout each of his reincarnations. Yet she cannot ever tell him of their past, of their love. She is always only his friend, confidant, servant, never his love. Yet while he cannot love her without remembering their past, of which she cannot remind him, he also cannot fall in love with another so long as the Star is here on Earth. The Prince is cursed in that he is unable to have a fulfilling life of love or purpose due to the deal that the Star has made with the Queen Mother. It has taken the Star many of his incarnations, to finally understand this.
Lian eventually discovers the true identities of Sparrow and Shao. At which point she realizes that despite her friendship with Shao and affection for him, he will never be for her as his fate is intertwined with that of the Star. No matter her own feelings, Shao would not be able to reciprocate so long as Sparrow remains in the mortal world.
In addition to this, there is drama, deception, and betrayal among the students and staff. There is the loss and trauma that accompanies war.
While I enjoyed this tale I would’ve liked to have seen more of an inclusion of additional ‘Legends’ offered up as the students were reading through them during their travels. Additionally, Sparrow couldn’t remind Shao of their past, the love they once shared, but what was there to prevent Lian from being able to remind Shao of this? Would that have unlocked his memories of his Star and allowed them to be together? After the way the book so thoroughly detailed much of their journey I felt the ending was just too abrupt. If Sparrow was setting Shao free then so be it but to have her disappear without a word to him didn’t sit right. I would’ve liked to have seen them either be reunited or have there be more of a fleshing out of a friendship into courtship between Shao and Lian after Sparrow left. There wasn’t a lengthy or deep relationship between them prior to the evacuation or after and throwing them together at the end just seemed abrupt. Shao was indulging in selfishness and toxic behaviors with his old acquaintance prior to Sparrow’s departure and that seemed off too. Then, with the snap of a finger he straightens out and goes for Lian? Some character building and him humbling himself before becoming romantically involved with Lian would’ve made more sense since the purpose of Sparrow leaving was to allow her Prince to grow, evolve, eventually reach enlightenment.
From the moment I saw the cover of this book, I was hooked. Then I saw some information that the main events which occurred in this book where events’ the author’s father lived and along with wanting to learn more about this time period, I knew I needed to read this book.
Janie Chang offers the reader an opportunity to learn about China’s history while also exploring the mythical legends that is intertwined in the culture. As an avid reader, I was rooting for the Minghua University as they continued their class studies and protected the Library of Legends on their evacuation. Janie Chang also wrote relatable characters that you wanted to see how their stories continued. A great historical fiction read!
Thank you to Edelweiss for my advanced review copy. All opinions in this review are my own.
I loved this book! So fascinating to learn about how the universities in China picked up and moved during WWII to protect not only their students but their libraries. This story is well told, through the eyes of three characters: Lian, a young student with secrets to keep; Shao, an older student Lian has a crush on; and Professor Kang, who leads the expedition to carry the precious Library of Legends to safety. There is also Sparrow, a servant to Shao, who is much more than she appears.
As with Chang’s other books, this one brings in a touch of the supernatural. Spirits roam the earth, their stories outlined in The Library of Legends. I enjoyed how the author weaved in a side plot of the movement of spirits as the war heightens and sweeps through China.
I’ve read Chang’s other books, Dragon Springs Road and Three Souls, and enjoyed them too. This one, however, is my favorite. Although the author leaves a couple of loose plot points open, which is why I marked it down a star, I give it a hearty recommendation. A very enjoyable read.
First, you have to get beyond that gorgeous cover. Go ahead and gaze at it, absorbing that artistry. Then once you are ready, open the cover and enter the fantastical world Janie Chang has created, a story blending Chinese history and Chinese folklore.
Amidst the brutality of the Japanese invasion of 1937, the books containing all the lore throughout Chinese history must be saved. A convoy of university students, carrying the 500-year-old collection of books, set out on a treacherous journey of over 1000 miles across the country. The story focuses on three of these travelers – Hu Lian, Liu Shaoming, and Sparrow. Friendship, romance, enchantment, secrets, the brutality of war, spies, the strength of the human spirit – all elements of this fascinating story. And above all the value of story – a belief that threads its way throughout many cultures.
The magical storyline involves humans who can see the spirits living among them, spirits who have taken the form of humans. At the center of this storyline is the love story of the Willow Star and the Prince. The Willow Star has been waiting hundreds of years for the Prince to recognize her – only then can she take him home with her, back to the heavens.
My heart ached for The Willow Star’s seemingly hopeless situation. I also felt great sadness for the spirits, having inhabited earthly forms for a long time, were now forced to leave those forms as the Japanese moved further inland. I am not normally a fan of fantasy, but the historical aspects of this stunning story held my attention. At the start of WWII many of China’s universities began migrating to interior regions of China in an effort to safeguard their intellectual legacy. Ancient literature was stored in caves under the care of university servants. This story focuses on one of those universities.
“Maybe immortals feel the passage of time differently than we do. Maybe a hundred years to her is only the blink of an eye, a single beat of the heart.”
Beautifully written and so enchanting! While this story is filled with history of war there is also the romance of enchanting love. The characters are richly developed that I feel in love with them and want more of their story! And the legends leave me spellbound with love for story! My first novel of Janie Chang which leaves me eager to read more!
Janie Chang’s The Library of Legends is a delicious mix of history, myth, and romance. Chang deftly intertwines Chinese folklore and historical detail to create a magical, heartfelt read.
Janie Chang brings wartime China to life in The Library of Legends, imbuing her characters with the same epic qualities they find in the mythic figures that follow them on their journey to safety. Moving smoothly between historical fiction and magic realism, this is a beautifully written story of love, hope, and courage.
Janie Chang has done it again with this story of an exodus of young students — treasured as China’s future — intermingled with an imaginary, unconventional departure of mystical beasts and legendary deities during a war that changes China forever. Evocative, unforgettable, The Library of Legends is truly out of this world!
Atmospheric and beautifully told, Janie Chang has woven a tale that tugs on the threads of China’s history and legend alike. Readers will find themselves immersed in this story of love amidst war, hope amidst sacrifice.
History with a touch of magical realism woven together in a wonderfully enjoyable novel, THE LIBRARY OF LEGENDS by Janie Chang. Chang is a new-to-me author and I enjoyed this foray into her work.
Set in 1937 China, the novel focuses on how, during the war with Japan, the Chinese wanted to protect their future and relocated all the universities and students to locations inland that the Japanese couldn’t reach with their bombing raids. They also wanted to protect the ancient texts of myths and folklore called The Library of Legends.
The subject is not one I have experience with and out of my normal subject matter, but how could I resist anything thing with library in the title? I loved Chang’s descriptions and her ability to draw me into the story. I also enjoyed how she wove the magical parts into the story so they appeared to be something expected in everyday life.
This story will surprise and delight as you immerse yourself in the beauty and wonder of the world Chang creates with her writing.
Thanks to Edelweiss and the Publisher for an advanced copy of this novel. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
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Lian is a student at Minghua University, basically because of the Library of Legends. This is an ancient library at this university which she wants to explore. But, when the Japanese start bombing, every student and faculty must evacuate. They are sworn to protect this library at all cost.
There are many unique and creative aspects to this tale. I quite enjoyed Lian. She is an introvert but she is strong and tough. She also has a big heart. Then there is the Chinese history sprinkled throughout this story. It is amazing. There is also a different type of intensity created throughout this novel. Between the Japanese and the mythical creatures…you never know what to expect.
I requested this book because of the cover and the title. The cover is gorgeous and it has library in the title. It must be about reading…correct? Well, Yes and No. It is about an ancient library and about the myths surrounding Chinese folklore. But it is also fantasy. This is not my genre…did I read the synopsis…NO! I am so terrible about that. When this story started to get “out there” I knew it was not for me. However, there is true genius in this writing. So if you are into historical fantasy. This one is for you.
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.
I was intrigued about The Library of Legends from the first time I heard about the book. The idea of college students trekking across China amid a war with a 500-year-old collection of books all while trying to stay safe made me want to pick up this book as soon as I could. Once I did pick up the book, I realized it was much more than just a story of college students and a library. The folklore, the friendships, the angst, and the magical storyline pulled me in and kept me entertained until I read the very last page. When I finished the book, I closed the cover and just thought about what a wonderful and historical story I had just read and how glad I was that I took my time, read every word, and enjoyed the book.
The history shared in the story was amazing. I did not know much about China in 1937 or their war with Japan. I am sure it was something I had to memorize in history class, but it was not something I remembered. After reading this book, the history will be something I remember and something I will look to learn more about. The folklore is what really drew me in. I was interested in how the folklore would play into the students reaching their destinations safely, how their relationships would grow, and how the story would end.
Janie Chang wrote a book that has heartache, love, and family. Chinese folklore and history were wonderful. I recommend picking up your own copy.
Excellent choice for book clubs. Love Chang’s exploration of historical and cultural details and her focus on the power of STORY to unite us all.