Books you should read

[terrie]

Having enjoyed them completely, I have to recommend Barry Hughart's books Bridge of Birds, The Story of the Stone, and Eight Skilled Gentlemen. They're fantasy that draws on Chinses folktales and legends and some of the funniest books I've ever read. They follow the adventures of Number Ten Ox and Li Kao, who goes around introducing himself "My surname is Li, and my personal name is Kao, and I have a slight flaw in my character."

One of my favorite bits is from the beginning of The Story of the Stone:

"But how can I tell [that story]?" I wailed. "In the first place I don't understand where it begins and in the second place I'm not sure it has and ending and in the third place even if I understood the ending it wouldn't do me any good because I don't understand the beginning in teh first place."

He gazed at me in silence. Then he said, "My boy, stay away from sentences like that. They tend to produce pimples and permanent facial tics."

Comments

[ltlj.livejournal.com]

I love those books!

[terrie01.livejournal.com]

It baffles me that these are big name classics in the genre. At the very least, they should have status similar to Mercedes Lackey and Anne McCaffery's early works.

[ceteramisto.livejournal.com]

I love those stories so much I have "Master Li" as one of my interests on my lj. The trip to hell in The Story of the Stone is my favorite scene, while Eight Skilled Gentlemen is my favorite of the books.

[neonhummingbird.livejournal.com]

I'm a big fan of Bridge of Birds; Li Kao is Teh Man, Yo. The other two are hard to get copies of unless you find the omnibus that came out a few years ago. :(

[terrie01.livejournal.com]

This is why Interlibrary Loan is our friend. :) My local system had Eight Skilled Gentlemen, but I had to send to a different county for The Story of the Stone.