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Today, "She who became the sun" by Shelley Parker-Chan published on May 18, 2022 by Éditions Bragelonne.
Emily Café Powell, contributor to the 20 Minutes
Books reading group
and blogger, recommends
The one who became the sun
by Shelley Parker-Chan, published on May 18, 2022 by Éditions Bragelonne.
His favorite quote:
“We do not change our destiny by prayer.
No, she thought bitterly.
But maybe we could appropriate another.
Why this book?
Because it is a high-flying first novel,
borrowing from the codes of historical narrative and the epic breath of fantasy.
Charismatic characters, political and economic issues, and questions of identity make this novel much more than a simple adventure story... And it's all the more stunning since this is the work of a first-timer novelist!
Because through the fate of a girl who will try to free herself
, Shelley Parker-Chan paints a less than stellar and hard-hitting portrait of the condition of women in medieval China.
The reflection on the place of women, their destiny, their right (or not) to desire something else is brilliantly orchestrated.
Because it is important to specify that this is a queer novel,
which shuffles the cards of the genre and evokes the theme of homosexuality or asexuality with great accuracy.
The question of transidentity underlies the whole novel.
Because it is high-flying entertainment,
which will take you to battlefields, monasteries and palaces: you will taste the dust on your tongue, the heat of the blazing southern sun from China, the smell of blood after a public execution… Carried by a very lively and very visual style, Shelley Parker-Chan's story can be devoured in just a few hours of reading.
The essentials in 2 minutes
The plot.
In 1345, in a small Chinese village ravaged by famine, live a father, his son and his daughter.
The oracle promises greatness to the son, and nothingness to the daughter.
But when her brother dies, the girl takes on his identity...
Characters.
The heroine, ambitious and determined to survive, decides to make her brother's destiny her own.
This leads to a whole quest for identity: who is she really?
A man, a woman ?
Has she become his brother?
This whole question underlies the plot…
Places.
It is in historical China that this novel takes place, although it is a fantasy novel...
The time.
The novel opens in 1345 and details the conflict between the invading Mongol and the nationalist rebels, the Red Turbans…
The author.
Australian of Asian origin, Shelley Parker-Chan is a former diplomat and international development adviser.
She Who Became the Sun
is her first novel.
This book was read with
passion!
Buy this book on Amazon
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