20 Essential Chinese Novels

Because of China's ancient history and massive geography conducive to hosting myriad cultures and subcultures, capturing its entire novelistic history in only 20 reads proves quite a daunting, admittedly impossible task. But the following sample — which should be digested as such rather than a definitive meal — covers a few different eras and philosophies that have irreversibly shaped the nation. Here in the States, students rarely get the chance to explore historical and cultural phenomena outside North America and Europe. Those piqued by the prospect of gathering new ideas and insights, regardless of whether or not they necessarily agree with or relate to them, might want to pick up a few of these novels. And then, of course, explore all the other facets of Chinese literature if they so desire.

1. Romance of the Three Kingdoms (14th Century) by Luo Guanzhong:

   Myth and history collide in this riveting fictional account of the Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms' inevitable waning. Literary types and history scholars consider Romance of the Three Kingdoms one of China's Four Great Classical Novels — an essential read that ensured previously oral-only traditions survived the centuries.
   

2. Water Margin (14th Century) by Shi Nai'an:

   Another book lauded with the Four Great Classical Novels label, Shi Nai'an's Water Margin (which goes by several different names in English, including Outlaws of the Marsh) relays folktales of the outlaw Song Jiang. His band of 36 men — later swelling to 108 — thrives and falls as the Song Dynasty rages onward.
   

3. Fengshen Yanyi (16th Century) by Lu Xixing and Xu Zhonglin:

   Fantasy and religion buffs will undoubtedly find plenty to love about the gods, goddesses, spirits and other mystical, mythical figures around which this narrative centers. As the Shang Dynasty ends and the Zhou Dynasty begins, traditional Taoist deities, immortals and heroes decide to intervene in mortal affairs, forever altering China's (and the world's) history.
   

4. Journey to the West (1590s) by Wu Cheng'en:

   One of the most beloved epics of all time — and probably the only Four Great Classical Novels with significant international familiarity — follows Monkey King Sun Wukong's mounting experiences, education and power levels. But simultaneously swelling pride and recklessness eventually prove his undoing, as he brashly rises up against Taoist gods and goddesses.
   

5. Dream of the Red Chamber (18th Century) by Cao Xueqin:

   The last of the Four Great Classical Novels, Cao Xueqin's Dream of the Red Chamber not only revolutionized Chinese vernacular literature, it even spawned its own scholarly field, known as "Redology!" Here, a pair of wealthy families watch their wealth, reputation, loves and lives ebb and flow based partly on the author's own experiences and observations.
   

6. The Scholars (1750) by Wu Jingzi:

   Wu Jingzi took a naturalistic approach to satirizing Ming academics, infusing the story with Confucian themes and warnings against taking studies so seriously, everything else ends up precluded. The Scholars is also notable for its depiction of female characters as equally capable as their male counterparts and the rebuilding of a beloved family temple.