The Master Li Series (Magill’s Guide to Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature)
At a glance:
- Author: Barry Hughart
- First Published: 1984
- Type of Work: Novels
- Type of Plot: Fantasy—alternate history
- Time of Work: 639, 640, and 650
- Setting: China
- Genres: Long fiction, Fantasy, Alternate history
- Subjects: Mysteries, Theft, Disasters, Natural disasters, Smuggling or smugglers, Puppets or puppet plays, China or Chinese people, Quest, Droughts, Heaven, Talisman or magical object, Seventh century
- Locales: China
The Plot
In Bridge of Birds, Number Ten Ox, the peasant narrator of all three books, meets Master Li, once the foremost scholar in China. Master Li is now out of favor because of a slight flaw in his character. The children of Ox’s village have been poisoned, and there is only one antidote: the fabulous ginseng Great Root of Power.
The first stop in the search for the Root is Peking, where Master Li, one of the world’s greatest confidence men, acquires funds. Next Master Li and Ox visit the last known owner of the Root. They free a trapped ghost and steal the...
[The entire page is 1530 words long]
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