I read a book in the early nineties called Imperial Lady by Andre Norton and Susan Shwartz. It follows the adventures of a Chinese woman named Silver Snow. This was the book that introduced me to Han dynasty China,206 BC-220 AD. It’s a wonderful fantasy book, especially if you’re an Andre Norton fan.
Silver Snow grows up in northern China near the Great Wall between China and the nomadic barbarians of the steppes. Her father is a general. Her three older brothers had died in battle against the nomads and her father raised her as like a son. She learned to hunt, ride and use a bow, and she also learned to read and write. A messenger from Changan, where the Emperor lives. She is to come there and be his concubine.
Silver Snow goes there with her maid, Willow, who has a club foot, also Willow may be a fox in human form. Silver Snow is quickly disliked by the chief eunuch, who thinks she is too assertive and thus unfeminine. He has a painting of her mad that makes her look ugly and the emperor doesn’t call her to his bed. An old general and comrade of her fathers is there. He has been turned into a eunuch as punishment for standing up for her father, who has been accused of being a traitor. Later she is given in marriage to the Hsiung-nu ruler. Hsiung-nu are powerful nomads that China has to give tribute to.
Its all very exciting. The main character finds herself put into an unfamiliar place(Emperor’s palace)where she can’t function very well and then she is thrust into an even stranger place among the Hsiung-nu. The writers do a great job of showing a strong and intelligent woman that doesn’t fit into the proper mold of her society. It shows her being pushed to survive in a strange place and learning the importance of her friendship with Willow. It made me fall in love with Han dynasty China and I’ll never forget that.
It also introduced me to the nonfiction writings of Michael Loewe. He is college history professor, who focuses on the Han dynasty. The first book that I read by him was one of the ones recommended in Norton and Shwartz’s book; Everyday Life in Early Imperial China. A great book that I’ll write about later.
