The Promise

A spellbinding and magical narrative, this is the story of modern China through the women who lived through it. At the start of the twentieth century in China, the Hans were married in an elaborate ceremony before they were even born. They went on to have nine children and chose colours portrayed in some of their favourite poems as nicknames for them - Red, Cyan, Orange, Yellow, Green, Green Tangerine, Purple, Blue and Rainbow. Fate, and the sweep of twentieth-century history, would later divide them. Xinran begins with the magic and tragedy of one young couple's wedding night in 1949, and goes on to tell personal experiences of loss, grief and hardship through China's extraordinary century. In doing so she tells a bigger story - how traditional Chinese values have been slowly eroded by the tide of modernity and how their outlooks on love, and the choices they've made in life, have been all been affected by the great upheavals of Chinese history.

Xinran is a British-Chinese author, journalist and activist. She was the host of a pioneering Chinese radio show 'Words on the Night Breeze', which invited women to discuss their issues live on air. Her first book, The Good Women of China (2002), recounted some of these stories and has been translated into over 30 languages and became an international bestseller. Her book The Promise was shortlisted for the society of Authors Translation Prize. In August 2004, Xinran set up 'The Mothers' Bridge of Love' (MBL), which reaches out to Chinese children in all corners of the world. By creating a bridge of understanding between China and the West and between adoptive culture and birth culture, MBL ultimately wants to help bridge the huge poverty gap that still exists in many parts of China.

Promises and 'talking love': my inspirations for this book Map of China Key Dates Introduction Note on the Text Part I. A Love Coloured by Wars and Political Movements First sister, Red Part II. A Communist Family Tree Second sister, Green Part III. A Bird's Love during the Cultural Revolution Green's daughter, Crane Part IV. Diverse 'Lovers' The 3D Generation: Lili, Yoyo, Wuhen Afterword: In and Out the Door of Life Author's Heartfelt Thanks