Lady Tan's Circle of WomenLady Tan's Circle of Women
What it's about
In 15th-century China, where an educated woman was considered worthless, Tan Yunxian is taught medicine by her grandmother, who is a doctor. Married into a wealthy family and confined to the women's quarters, she treats the women around her, concubines, servants and her friend Meiling, a midwife, while fighting to keep practicing. It's based on a real woman.
Why it's worth reading
It was a Goodreads Choice finalist. Lisa See, author of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, writes an immersive historical novel.
You'll love it if you liked
Memoirs of a Geisha
The Kitchen God's Wife
The Covenant of WaterGood to know
There are detailed descriptions of foot binding and childbirth.
By the numbers
- Readers88 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller45 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
On our reserve shelf: it's well reviewed, but isn't currently a prize winner, a lifetime bestseller or a book everyone's talking about, so we don't rank it. We check again every month, and it can still turn up in your 50 once you've read most of our ranked books.
Why it made the list
Reads as
Moving
More by Lisa See
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Quick answers
Is Lady Tan's Circle of Women worth reading?
It was a Goodreads Choice finalist. Its Must-Read Score is 76.3 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Lady Tan's Circle of Women about?
In 15th-century China, where an educated woman was considered worthless, Tan Yunxian is taught medicine by her grandmother, who is a doctor. Married into a wealthy family and confined to the women's quarters, she treats the women around her, concubines, servants and her friend Meiling, a midwife, while fighting to keep practicing. It's based on a real woman.
How long does it take to read Lady Tan's Circle of Women?
About 9 hours (343 pages), or about 3 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Lady Tan's Circle of Women?
If you liked it, try Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden, The Kitchen God's Wife by Amy Tan or The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese.