Three Kingdoms

Oh my God. Wait for it... I have actually finally finished this/these books that I started in June and vowed I wouldn't read anything else until I finished. Sure, there were four of them, >2000 pages total, and they were a little dense, but I could have polished them off in a month before. I can't believe I have to do this, but one of my New Year's Resolutions is to read more. The last-year version of me would be shaking her head in disgust at what I've become.

Oh - review. Did I love the books? Obviously not, although I think they're definitely a worthy read. If you're going to spend any time in China, various stories/characters from the Three Kingdoms are cornerstones of Chinese literature/art (from my minimal understanding anyway). The stories are long and complex, and the incredible number of characters makes it hard to know who's on which side, but it really gives you a feel for the moral and goal of early Chinese literature. Virtue (I read a translation of the Mao version) is considered above legitimacy and the Mandate of Heaven falls on the ruler who serves the people. Decadence and self-indulgence are the reasons of the fall of the Shu-Han and Wu empires, not the greater military strength of the Wei/Jin. There's a lot of time spent on various military strategies, and at times it feels like the author is just trying to get as much detail in as possible to the detriment of the story. As always, I don't know how much of that is translation or just cultural differences in storytelling style.

It does remind me (and this is a common comparison) of the Iliad due to its epic proportions and lack of a key central character. I guess Kongming is as close as it gets - and he's a pretty cool guy. I felt like the author struggled with him a bit - how do you have the perfect primer minister/military strategist who at the same time has 6 failed invasions into the Northern Heartland and at the end of the day the Kingdom he supports failed? The external excuses for his failures, however historically accurate, started to get kind of weak by the end.

Anyway, I guess I'd recommend this version for anyone seriously interested in Chinese culture, but most readers could probably get by with a shorter version.