This was one of my more challenging books to read aloud. Not for context's sake, but because the words did not glide off my tongue as easily. I had this same issue with The Good Earth, the first book in the Good Earth Trilogy. I have not researched Buck's writing style, if it was intentional to the story; it did not read smoothly like butter but more like refrigerated whipped unsalted butter in a tub, which is supposed to be fluffy and smooth and easy to spread, but is actually coarse and rugged. I know...all that to describe how I struggled with reading aloud.

But on to the context.

Sons continues where The Good Earth ended. The patriarch, Wang Lung, dies, and his three sons prepare his funeral and divide his property. Each son, who is referred by family name, Wang, and his placement at birth, or later, by a personal characteristic, is unique in his ideals, individuality, and interests.

Wang the Eldest is an avaricious, overweight, indolent husband and father who prefers women and idleness. He is known as Wang the Landlord. Wang the Second is business keen and does not complicate his life with wastefulness or extra wives. He is known as Wang the Merchant. But the third brother, Wang the Tiger, who rebelled against his father's will in The Good Earth, has returned briefly for the funeral, and he has been expanding his ambition to build and lead his own military.

He realizes he has no son to train up as a soldier to pass on his army of warriors, and he convinces his two older brothers to spare one of their sons each, which they agree. One proves to be fit to serve, but the other fails. Guess which one failed.

Meanwhile, the majority of the story focuses on Wang the Tiger's successful schemes to take over existing armies and regions of land. He expands his military and extends his small empire. But what he desires more than anything in the world is a son of his own. He later contradicts his own principles on women and takes two wives in the hope that one of them will give him a son, which does happen. And it is his greatest pride, to the point of worship.

Wang the Tiger conditions his son for the military, but as is common, his son does not share his father's desire. He does not want to be a warrior or lead his father's army. For whatever reason, he is more interested in the farmer, agriculture, and the land. It is as if the story has come full circle, back to Wang Lung, the Patriarch.

As the story closes, Wang the Tiger's son has returned from "military school" in a new uniform. His father asked,
What strange garb is that you wear?
To which his son replied,

It is the garb of the new army of the revolution.

Wang the Tiger shouted:

It is the army of my enemy! You are my enemy -- I ought to kill you, my son!

The story ends, but it is not final. There is one more in the trilogy: A House Divided.

Overall, Sons reads like a soap opera. Though I did not include the details of every character in this little blurb, Pearl Buck does not forget about anyone. There is old age and tragedy and death, and plenty of growing up and marriage. The times of China are changing, too. So, we shall see what will become of the House of Wang. ( )

The Good Earth Trilogy Book 2 of 3, a classic Chinese fable, originally published in 1932.
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This book focuses on the three sons of Wang Lung and their greed for money, which pushes them to sell off most of their inheritance their father has left them.

The oldest, Wang the Landlord, despised anything to do with the land. He considered himself scholarly, and was about living an extravagant lifestyle to uphold the family's wealthy image, and money slipped easily through his hands. He had a couple of wives and frequented the gambling and prostitute salon, and drank and ate heartily. He sold most of his inheritance, the land that his father left him. He became fat and lazy and raised lazy sons who expected things to be given to them.

The middle son, Wang the Merchant, was a hard worker from an early age and very frugal with his money, but, he preferred more of an entrepreneurial lifestyle over farming. So, his main income came from other merchants who rented his buildings, and from a few prime farmland leases that he purchased from his brother. He saved his money and his family lived within their means so that when hard-times hit, he was pretty much depended on by the family. He had one wife. His boys worked in the granary business like their father. But, only because they were obedient sons, they worked. They looked forward to the day he passed so they could sell the business and live their own dreams off at least some of the riches they know the family has.

The youngest, Wang the Tiger, despised the land so much that he ran away at an early age and became a soldier. He sold all of his share for the silver to build up his own army and became a lord of wars, conquering provinces up north and running out the gangs of robber thieves. He was a hard man, but a fair man. He was not connected emotionally to people because of his single focus drive...to rule over his own large province in Northern China. He always mocked his older brother's sons for being such weak, pathetic human-beings. But, then he finally had a son of his own. He gave his son everything he, himself, had ever wanted as a child, but didn't have. The son didn't want any of it. All he ever wanted was the earthen house and farmland of his grandfather, and to become a farmer. But, Wang the Tiger, wouldn't allow it and sent him off down south to be trained for war. He was trained alright. He joined the south Revolutionaries, who had ongoing wars with the north, against his father's regime.

"Sons" focused more on the youngest son, Wang the Tiger, and his ongoing wars and conquering provinces for his rule. After a while, it did get a bit monotonous, but she still added enough interest to keep me going and want to continue reading through to the last book of the trilogy.

And now, begins "A House Divided" of The Good Earth Trilogy Book 3.... ( )

This book is about children who refuse to become who their parents want them to become. ( )

The sequel to The God Earth, this book follows the lives of the three sons of Wang Lung, one q landlord, one a merchant and one a war lord, It relates how each son abandons the land that Wang Lung held dear and then how each, in turn, is disappointed by their own sons.

This book is written in a really irritating style – almost like Buck was trying to make her narrative sound like a person speaking stilted English. Predictable and not very interesting. ( )

I don't know what else to say here besides things happened to people and I wanted to take a nap. Also for those who download this via Kindle, never fear, book #2 is not as long as you think. I got to 60 percent and book #2 was done. The remaining 40 percent was a preview (a really long one) of the final third book in this series.

I really wish I had DNFed this book. I am going to start reclaiming my time and just kicking a book immediately after I am not feeling it. I honestly have not wanted to read a thing since some of the books on my currently reading list have not moved me at all. Hoping that I get in a better mindset later and can just finish some more books soon.

"Sons" the second book in the House of Earth series follows the sons of Wang Lung, called Wang Lung the Landlord, Wang Lung the Merchant and Wang the Tiger. The book focuses mostly on Wang the Tiger with Buck popping up now and again into the eldest and second's son's businesses with some minor appearances by Pearl Blossom.

I didn't get a good grasp on any character in this second book. Unlike with the first book, the women in this one are paper thin instead of being realized as their own characters. Wang the Tiger's first wife may have been interesting to follow, but Buck quickly dispatches with her with the quickness.

This second book is like night and day from the first book. All of the characters were underdeveloped and the writing was not good. I would say that this book is 100 percent filler since I think that Buck wants to focus on what happens to this family in book #3. I also wish that Buck had stuck a time period in this series since I can't tell where we are in China's history. ( )