October 2012: Pearl S. Buck: A Cultural Biography (Conn)

Post date: Oct 24, 2012 3:49:50 PM

A dozen or so alumnae gathered at Nancy's house to enjoy her fabulous spice bread and discuss Peter Conn's biography of Pearl S. Buck. The book was well received, and her life story a remarkable one. We pondered what made the child of missionaries become such a strong progressive voice, with social ideas far ahead of her time, and agreed that her focus on China when nobody in America thought it mattered was responsible for her lack of lasting fame. Some found the style of the biography a bit too "soft", while others really enjoyed the way he created an engaging storyline that drew you along, while still cramming in so many details.

Many interesting ideas were raised and clever things said, but although I thought I was paying attention, I did not take notes and cannot seem to bring them back now. I'll update this post if anything else occurs to me.