I read some books for pure enjoyment, and they don't need to be deep. Others, like this one, come across immediately as historically well-researched, and tell a deep and immersive story. We first see Lady Tan as an eight-year-old child in the year 1469 in China, learning at her mother's side what she needs to do to be a good wife (hint: produce sons for her husband). It doesn't matter that all my modern liberal views are shouting against the traditional role of Chinese women and the awful tradition of foot-binding ‒ the story stays true to the time and I just need to accept it. Tan Yunxian knows as a child what the expectations are. She will eventually leave her parents' home and become subjugated to her husband and to her mother-in-law as she attempts to make as many sons as possible for her husband.
However, this child has a unique story: after her mother's death, she was sent to live with her father's parents, both of whom were doctors. She soaks up the research bent of her grandmother, in addition to all of the medical knowledge that she can, and eventually she knows what she needs to know to help heal others, particularly women. She is saddened, as a fifteen year old bride, when her mother-in-law demands she not practice medicine, but over time, she is allowed to pick up parts of her practice, in conjunction with a childhood friend who is the daughter of a midwife. While both a doctor and a midwife can be present at a birth of the child, their roles are very different: the doctor does not touch blood or handle the baby.
This is the fascinating tale of a woman's life, and it is apparently based on the life of a real woman, a Chinese physician who actually wrote a book about her research. The Chinese traditions, both medical and cultural, are eye-opening. The differences in the the lives of upper class women, working class women, and concubines in China stand out. Highly recommended.
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