Rating: 
Summary: Bridge of Birds is literate and entertaining!
Review: All three of the Master Li books are excellent! My only wish is that Hughart would write more. The plots are dynamic, the dialog is funny, and the characters are appealing. This book is appropriate for teenagers and adults. Due to some of the language and content, parents might want to review it for younger kids, however I would let my own children read this without hesitation.
Please buy this book!
Rating:
Summary: "Anything is possible in China"
Review: Once upon a time, in post-war Britain, and author named Ernest Bramah started to write what became a slim handful of books set in an ancient, and mostly mythical, China. The hero of these books was Kai Lung, who is best described as a well meaning rascal. The stories tell of his (mis)adventures in love and the pursuit of sufficient cash. Bramah had a rare, polished style, full of irony and sly humor, which was the continual delight of his readers. In this reissue of the 1984 edition Barry Hughart ventured for the first time into a rarified world entirely reminiscent of Kai Lung's with equal aplomb and verve.Instead of Kai Lung, our heroes are Yu Lu, commonly referred to as Number Ten Ox (to differentiate him from the eminent author of 'The Classic of Tea') and Li Kao, a great scholar with 'a slight flaw in his character.' Yu Lu plays the part of the brave, strong, and heroic youth. The perfect foil for Li Kao, who is sneaky, tricky and... Well, one of them has to be capable of quick thinking. Together they mount an impossible quest to save the lives of the children of Yu Lu's village. They have been treacherously poisoned by Ku poison, the only antidote for which is a 'Great Root of Power' (small drum roll). Without hesitation our heroes head off into a completely mythical world, where they work schemes to steal the money they need to work the schemes that will yield up the magical ginseng. In doing so they must confront the incredibly gross Ancestress, who rules China from underneath, and the immensely greedy Duke of Ch'in. And bitter fate has arranged that the 'Great Root of Power' (yet another drum roll) has been cut into parts and spread about in fabulous treasuries, all guarded by awful monsters and inescapable traps. Will they conquer the forces arrayed against them? Will they discover the real reason for everything that has happened to them? Will they find the heart of the 'Great Root of Power' (boom!) and save the children of Ku-fu? Of course, but how they do it will mystify and dazzle you. If Barry Hughart has borrowed a plot device from Ernest Bramah, he has made it uniquely his own. His language is slightly more modern, and he has traded some irony for sarcasm and slapstick, but the true magic, a fantasy world peopled by countless characters, each more gemlike than the last, set in a work that shines with equal magic. If you like well wrought, tongue in cheek fantasy, put 'Bridge of Birds' on the top of your reading list. And don't forget to look for the sequels.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best ever
Review: I first encountered Bridge of Birds 15 years ago and have yet to find a better read. Ancient China "as it might have been" is evoked perfectly, and the story unfolds masterfully and at a perfect pace. The fact that Hughart seems to have stopped writing with Eight Skilled Gentlemen was most distressing, and for quite some time it was near impossible to find any of his books. My advice to you is -- grab it while you can. You won't regret it
Rating:
Summary: An enjoyable Chinese fantasy story.
Review: If you are after an interesting and rather hilarious modern Chinese tale, look no further. The plot is rich, twisted and anything but predictable, the characters complex and the language is excellent. You will find that the carefully controlled journey and narrative elements are pleasantly woven together with cultural mannerisms and a little black comedy to form a unput-down-able read. Barry Hughart has plenty of potential as a great fantasy writer, raising him to the ranks of Michael Moorcock and Terry Pratchett. Enjoyable, easy to read and entertaining, there are no lulls in the book, the characters and plot are both interesting and entertaining. This book is a must for a Birthday/Christmas present, pleasing those who enjoy fantasy, comedy and folklore.
Rating:
Summary: An ancient China that should have been
Review: I love this book. I love it so much I lent it to a friend, lost it, and have just now purchased it again. Told with wryness and sly irony, this is the story of Number Ten Ox, a peasant with a big heart and a strong back, and Master Li Kao, a sage with a slight flaw in his character. The children of Ox's village have taken ill, and Ox enlists Li Kao's help to cure them-- in the process of discovering a cure,the two gentlemen stumble into hilarious coincidence, sanguine adventure, monstrous greed, and a legend of breathtaking poignancy. The historical accuracy of this book is (and is meant to be) highly questionable... but it's insight into the human heart is as sweet and as serious as Number Ten Ox himself.
Rating:
Summary: One of the great fantasies
Review: What can I say that has not already been said. Nothing. So I will simply reiterate that this one of the finest fantasies stories that I have been privledged to read - think Indiana Jones crossed with Sherlock Holmes and set in Ancient China. When you finish the Bridge of Birds, seek out a copy of the Story of the Stone and the Eight Skilled Gentlemen and then join me in regretting that no other adventures of Master Li and Number Ten will be published.
Rating:
Summary: Bridge of Birds an exciting, comic and romantic fantasy
Review: Bridge of Birds is an exciting, comic romantic fantasy of a real China. Mr. Hughart has woven the legends and culture of ancient China into a refresing and very fun novel to read. It is a great book to share. My girlfriend and I read it aloud to each other and could not wait to read more. I have read this book three times and it is still a page turner.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, funny and wickedly clever
Review: I am an avid reader of all genres and this rates as one of my favorite books of all time. Based on folkloric Chinese ghost stories, it is at once a clever mystery, a beautiful love story, and a wickedly funny farce in which the same crazy and wonderful characters keep popping up in amusing new situations. Barry Hughart has taken some of the most popular myths and stories of our time and anachronistically transported them back to a fantastical ancient China. I won't repeat the main plot points (they've been summarized all too well here already), but this is simply a delightful book. Think of a dungeon and dragons game for intelligent and well-read adults. Many reviewers have commented on how this book made them laugh aloud. It not only makes me laugh out loud every time I read it, its exploration of the true meaning of love and generosity also makes me cry.
Rating: 
Summary: I just don't get it.
Review: I admit that I am not your typical reader. I love all kinds of fiction: Tom Clancy, Ursula LeGuin, Joseph Heller, Kurt Vonnegut, Charles Dickens and on and on .... but some popular writing just leaves me cold. For example, I don't like reading Stephen King novels very much. Out of eight that I have read, none were better than milding interesting. Many people can't get enough Stephen King, but I've had more than enough to last a lifetime. So, I read through all of the reviews here, and I bought the 'Bridge of Birds'. Maybe my expectations were just too high, but I was being generous in giving this book '3 stars'. If the other reviews are any indication, here is another example where I am swimming against the great tide of humanity. This book barely brought a grin to my face once or twice. Consider this scenario... the two heros of this book jump out of a tower and are saved from death by bouncing off the stomach of a very fat man. The fat man is also unhurt. OK...is this funny? Is this entertaining? My six year old niece would probably think so. I just don't get it. Here's an example of something else that bothered me. The book describes a particularly gruesome form of torture in some detail. Think of the iron maiden, but worse. Is this entertaining? Not to me. I just don't get it. Maybe the best way to describe this book is as a fairy tale, more than fantasy. As a fairy tale, it has a certain charm. However, if you take that perspective, then the thin bits of bawdy humor seem out of place. I tried to like this book, or at least to understand why so many others say that they did. In the end, I can only shake my head and once more say, "I just don't get it".
Rating: 
Summary: Pure Literary Fun
Review: Before I begin, I'd like to address some of the complaints I have read. It isn't historically accurate, nor is it trying to be, it is a book of fantasy and humor set in China. Do not approach this book as a work of historical fiction, or Oriental Literature; two of the seventy six reviewer have made this mistake, and as such have missed out entirely on the fun.
The story of Number Ten Ox's quest to save his village from a plague "that has learned to count" is great fun. I have yet to find a book that has made me laugh quite as much this one, and I recommend it without reservations to anyone who has a sense of humor. I also suggest reading it out loud to a group of people, humor is always magnified when it is shared.
|
