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  • Published: 1 April 1981
  • ISBN: 9780140443707
  • Imprint: Penguin Classics
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 640
  • RRP: $32.99

The Story of the Stone




The Story of the Stone (c. 1760), also known by the title of The Dream of the Red Chamber, is the great novel of manners in Chinese literature.

The Story of the Stone (c. 1760), also known by the title of The Dream of the Red Chamber, is the great novel of manners in Chinese literature.
Divided into five volumes, of which The Warning Voice is the third, it charts the glory and decline of the illustrious Jia family (a story which closely accords with the fortunes of the author's own family). The two main characters, Bao-yu and Dai-yu, are set against a rich tapestry of humour, realistic detail and delicate poetry, which accurately reflects the ritualized hurly-burly of Chinese family life. But over and above the novel hangs the constant reminder that there is another plane of existence - a theme which affirms the Buddhist belief in a supernatural scheme of things.

  • Published: 1 April 1981
  • ISBN: 9780140443707
  • Imprint: Penguin Classics
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 640
  • RRP: $32.99

Other books in the series

On Sparta
Love
Annals
Military Dispatches

About the author

Cao Xueqin

Cao Xueqin (1715-63) was born into a family which for three generations held the office of Commissioner of Imperial Textiles in Nanking, a family so wealthy they were able to entertain the Emperor four times. However, calamity overtook them and their property was consfiscated. Cao Xueqin was living in poverty when he wrote his famous novel The Story of the Stone.