The Good Earth: Original Classic 1931 Edition

The Good Earth has won the affection of millions of readers since its first publication in 1931. It won the Pulitzer Prize in 1932, and its author, Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973), was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature 1938—the first American woman to be so honored.

The story, set in the Chinese province of Anhui (formerly Anhwei) in the early twentieth century, focuses on Wang Lung, a simple peasant who takes a wife, O—lan, from the wealthy House of Hwang. Together they work their land. Some...