Three Kingdoms
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- Create Date：2021-03-28 13:17:59
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Luo Guanzhong
- ISBN：7119005901
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Summary
Complete and unabridged， Moss Roberts's translation provides an authoritative， annotated English-language version of one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature。
"The empire， long divided， must unite; long united， must divide。 Thus it has ever been。" With this characterization of the inevitable cycle of Chinese history， the monumental tale Three Kingdoms begins。 As important for Chinese culture as the Homeric epics have been for the West， this Ming Dynasty masterpiece continues to be read and loved throughout China as well as in Japan， Korea， and Vietnam。 The novel offers a startling and unsparing view of how power is wielded， how diplomacy is conducted， and how wars are planned and fought; it has influenced the ways that Chinese think about power， diplomacy， and war even to this day。
Three Kingdoms portrays a fateful moment at the end of the Han Dynasty （206 B。C。-A。D。 220） when the future of the Chinese empire lay in the balance。 Writing more than a millennium later， Luo Guanzhong drew on often told tales of this turbulent period to fashion a sophisticated compelling narrative， whose characters display vivid individuality and epic grandeur。
The story begins when the emperor， fearing uprisings by peasant rebels known as the Yellow Scarves， sends an urgent appeal to the provinces for popular support。 In response， three young men - the aristocratic Liu Xuande， the fugitive Lord Guan， and the pig-butcher Zhang Fei - meet to pledge eternal brotherhood and fealty to their beleaguered government。 From these events comes a chain of cause and consequence that leads ultimately to the collapse of the Han。
"The empire， long divided， must unite; long united， must divide。 Thus it has ever been。" With this characterization of the inevitable cycle of Chinese history， the monumental tale Three Kingdoms begins。 As important for Chinese culture as the Homeric epics have been for the West， this Ming Dynasty masterpiece continues to be read and loved throughout China as well as in Japan， Korea， and Vietnam。 The novel offers a startling and unsparing view of how power is wielded， how diplomacy is conducted， and how wars are planned and fought; it has influenced the ways that Chinese think about power， diplomacy， and war even to this day。
Three Kingdoms portrays a fateful moment at the end of the Han Dynasty （206 B。C。-A。D。 220） when the future of the Chinese empire lay in the balance。 Writing more than a millennium later， Luo Guanzhong drew on often told tales of this turbulent period to fashion a sophisticated compelling narrative， whose characters display vivid individuality and epic grandeur。
The story begins when the emperor， fearing uprisings by peasant rebels known as the Yellow Scarves， sends an urgent appeal to the provinces for popular support。 In response， three young men - the aristocratic Liu Xuande， the fugitive Lord Guan， and the pig-butcher Zhang Fei - meet to pledge eternal brotherhood and fealty to their beleaguered government。 From these events comes a chain of cause and consequence that leads ultimately to the collapse of the Han。
Reviews
Daniy
，
Game of Thrones before GoT was a thing！I listened to it as a podcast on http://www。3kingdomspodcast。com/ and I loved it so much！ Its definetly a tldr tho， so I am planning on reading someday， hopefully in a physical copy！ Game of Thrones before GoT was a thing！I listened to it as a podcast on http://www。3kingdomspodcast。com/ and I loved it so much！ Its definetly a tldr tho， so I am planning on reading someday， hopefully in a physical copy！ 。。。more
Quang Tiến
，
Truyện bao hàm nhiều đạo lý đáng học hỏi。 Tuy nhiên có nhiều chương khá là thừa thãi， không ảnh hưởng nhiều tới nội dung chính vẫn được đưa vào。 Trong khi đó nhiều chuyện cần được kể kỹ hơn nhằm tăng tính thuyết phục lại được kể khá sơ sài。 Ví dụ như tại sao Khổng Minh đoán được kế của quân địch hầu như không được lý giải， mà chỉ vỏn vẹn một câu văn đại khái là ta đã đoán được ý giặc rồi。
Jez
，
Magic。
Mark
，
In a "clean up my shelves" mood in 2021， I noticed that what I had listed for this book when I first listed it a decade ago （！） was something that was only volume 1 of 2， so I'm taking the chance to correct that。 I am sure I didn't read this exact translation as what I read was available online for free。 This is what 2011 me wrote about a book I'd read five years previously:One time I decided that I would look into the story that inspired the Dynasty Warriors video games， which at the time I spe In a "clean up my shelves" mood in 2021， I noticed that what I had listed for this book when I first listed it a decade ago （！） was something that was only volume 1 of 2， so I'm taking the chance to correct that。 I am sure I didn't read this exact translation as what I read was available online for free。 This is what 2011 me wrote about a book I'd read five years previously:One time I decided that I would look into the story that inspired the Dynasty Warriors video games， which at the time I spent a significant amount of time playing。 I read an edition that was available entirely online and free， so I guess I might question the translation， but it was cool to immerse in a period of history that they don't exactly teach you about in your high school world history class。 Trying to write these thoughts five years later it's tough to describe what I liked about it。 It's not a story with complex prose， but the primary characters stand out and the introduction to a time and place in Chinese culture that shows an influence still present today （through the likes of Sun Tzu and Confucius） is cool to see。 。。。more
IrritableSatirist
，
Many argue that Luo Guanzhong's Three Kingdoms is the best Chinese novel ever written。 Having read it， it's easy to see why。 Three Kingdoms is very entertaining， because there are many scenes that are memorable。 Episodes like the Battle of the Red Cliffs or Cao Cao's recruitment of Shan Fu will stay with me for years to come。 It goes into a good deal of detail， including in the battles， but it never goes into excessive detail。 The pacing is perfect， which is a major aspect to the novel's success Many argue that Luo Guanzhong's Three Kingdoms is the best Chinese novel ever written。 Having read it， it's easy to see why。 Three Kingdoms is very entertaining， because there are many scenes that are memorable。 Episodes like the Battle of the Red Cliffs or Cao Cao's recruitment of Shan Fu will stay with me for years to come。 It goes into a good deal of detail， including in the battles， but it never goes into excessive detail。 The pacing is perfect， which is a major aspect to the novel's success。 The historical writing style also allow for great characterization， even giving the character's decisions and their consequences both comic and tragic connotations。 In some scenes you can't help but laugh， and in others you can't help but cry。 On top of that， Three Kingdoms has a lot to say about war， about virtue， about fate。 It's a humbling thematic load， very powerful statement on the human condition。Powerful historical novel that is extremely entertaining。 Strongly recommended。 。。。more
Chris
，
It's。。。 A lot。 And often hard to get through and keep track of for an ADHD afflicted mind。 But this story is fantastic， and it's tragic that it's not as well known and widespread as Greek mythology。 It's。。。 A lot。 And often hard to get through and keep track of for an ADHD afflicted mind。 But this story is fantastic， and it's tragic that it's not as well known and widespread as Greek mythology。 。。。more
Treye SF
，
It was too long， I didn’t like the writing style， there were far too many characters， but there’s a good story at the core of this
LionC
，
It has real characters but fake stories
James
，
It’s always on the verge of seeming repetitive。 But the story comes into focus from about 15% through & it becomes a magnificent tale of hope running up against fate。 Cao Cao & Kong Ming will stay with with me for a long time。
Jordan Giles
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 A sprawling and intricate tale about the crumbling division of ancient China's Han Empire - featuring hundreds of named characters and taking place over more than a hundred years。 All of the characters present at the novel's beginning are long dead by its end。 Perfect for those interested in Ancient Chinese history， or military strategy （think along the lines of Sun Tzu）， but a challenging read， in no small part due to its length。 A sprawling and intricate tale about the crumbling division of ancient China's Han Empire - featuring hundreds of named characters and taking place over more than a hundred years。 All of the characters present at the novel's beginning are long dead by its end。 Perfect for those interested in Ancient Chinese history， or military strategy （think along the lines of Sun Tzu）， but a challenging read， in no small part due to its length。 。。。more
Ph_ilip
，
a
Shelby Dawson
，
Technically I read most of this in 2020 but that whole year owes me （and everyone else on the planet） big time so whatever。I want to say that this was a fun time， and I mean it kind of was。 As a huge fan of Dynasty Warriors I was thrilled to get my hands on this。 It took me FOREVER to get through though and not gonna lie it pissed me off like twenty times。 The game takes a lot of liberties and the book just did not hold up to the version of these well loved characters that I have kept in the mem Technically I read most of this in 2020 but that whole year owes me （and everyone else on the planet） big time so whatever。I want to say that this was a fun time， and I mean it kind of was。 As a huge fan of Dynasty Warriors I was thrilled to get my hands on this。 It took me FOREVER to get through though and not gonna lie it pissed me off like twenty times。 The game takes a lot of liberties and the book just did not hold up to the version of these well loved characters that I have kept in the memory bank of my noggin for the past fifteen years。 （view spoiler）[ Cao Pi beheads Zhen Ji and I lost my whole damn mind。 （hide spoiler）]However， a book that remains as popular as this one has after all this time， has got to get credit where it's due。 I think if you are also a fan of the games， you will enjoy this for the most part。 I don't think I'd recommend it to anyone else though。 。。。more
Nguyễn Miên
，
Nội dung thực sự hấp dẫn và cuốn hút。Nhờ nó mà mình hiểu thêm về các nhân vật lịch sử nổi tiếng và có cái nhìn đa chiều hơn về mặt tốt-xấu của các nhân vật。
Lim Weng Chiat
，
Do note that this is firstly a translation， and secondly also an abridged edition （many chapters were trimmed off and replaced by brief summaries）， thus you should expect some losses or misinterpretations in content。 Nevertheless， whatever that was chosen to remain in this version still makes for a good read， especially for someone who is familiar with this classic。 There's just something intriguing about Romance of the Three Kingdoms that drew me to it， and yet I often can't put a finger on wha Do note that this is firstly a translation， and secondly also an abridged edition （many chapters were trimmed off and replaced by brief summaries）， thus you should expect some losses or misinterpretations in content。 Nevertheless， whatever that was chosen to remain in this version still makes for a good read， especially for someone who is familiar with this classic。 There's just something intriguing about Romance of the Three Kingdoms that drew me to it， and yet I often can't put a finger on what exactly it is。 There are many dominant themes underlying ROTK， which I will not go into details here， but I thought what gelled so perfectly was the interweaving of these themes with reality。 I've heard ROTK being described as 7-parts history and 3-parts fiction， and to me this 70% is what makes the 30% resonate more strongly with the reader。 。。。more
Andy
，
This story follows articulates the dissolution and resolution of China between the end of the Han and the beginning of the Jin dynasty。 The story is wide-ranging and engaging， but it is written like many other epics， which makes it a bit harder to get through and much harder to get absorbed in。 Still a recommended book。
Tien Trinh
，
As a big fan of Chinese history and culture， I have read this twice and watch the TV series thrice。 Each time gave me a bunch of different feelings and lessons。 The first time， when I was a high schooler， my dad bought me one， he is also the fanatic of this composition。 You know my father even chose Khuong Duy to name his grandson。 The novel has widened my horizon significantly。 I felt like I did not know about human behaviour， human tricks; however， after reading it， I realised a lot of things。 As a big fan of Chinese history and culture， I have read this twice and watch the TV series thrice。 Each time gave me a bunch of different feelings and lessons。 The first time， when I was a high schooler， my dad bought me one， he is also the fanatic of this composition。 You know my father even chose Khuong Duy to name his grandson。 The novel has widened my horizon significantly。 I felt like I did not know about human behaviour， human tricks; however， after reading it， I realised a lot of things。Let's get started with the plot。 The novel concentrates on the fight between three kingdoms Wei， Shu and Wu about more than 2000 years ago。 I appeared thousands of talents， scholars， heroes at the chaotic periods。 The three most famous ones are Cao Cao， Liu Bei and Sun Jian。 Besides the time witnessed the appearance of the very famous advisors and commanders such as Zhuge Liang， Zhang Fei， Guan Yu， Gua Jia， Sima Yi who paid great contributions to their Lords， Kings or their Kingdoms。By understanding the way of thinking， acting and behaviour， I can generally summarise the historical situation and the ideology of their life goals especially the very strong influence by Confusism which can be considered as the fundamental backbone of Chinese culture。In short， it is worth for readers to enjoy their time and understand about Chinese history and culture。 I strongly recommended it！ 。。。more
Cillian Flood
，
So first thing to note is that this is an abridged translation。 I was disappointed by that and felt a bit cheated as it didn't mention it anywhere on the front cover。 I read these old classics to see what resonated with people over the ages as much as I do for the entertainment factor。 So reading an abridged version feels somewhat less pure。 The optimist in me said that I'd enjoy the story more， because the book is known to have an awful lot of fluff （I think I've heard that on average every thr So first thing to note is that this is an abridged translation。 I was disappointed by that and felt a bit cheated as it didn't mention it anywhere on the front cover。 I read these old classics to see what resonated with people over the ages as much as I do for the entertainment factor。 So reading an abridged version feels somewhat less pure。 The optimist in me said that I'd enjoy the story more， because the book is known to have an awful lot of fluff （I think I've heard that on average every three pages a character is introduced， and every three pages a character dies in this story， which doesn't sound entirely inaccurate）。 Did I as a result of an abridgement？ Hard to tell， but I know it took me quite a long time to finish this copy， so heaven knows how long it would have taken had I read the full length。I split this book into three distinct eras。 The pre Three Kingdoms era， the unacknowledged Three Kingdom era and the actual Three Kingdom era。 The pre Three Kingdoms era is probably the shortest consisting the first ten chapters or so， but it's also the absolute craziest。 So much happens in those first handful of chapters that I had no idea what was going on。 Character build and break alliances and change where they are and who they're fighting so rapidly within the span of a single chapter it's hard to keep track。 It's less three kingdoms and more a battle royale with every man for himself。 The story that gets the most focus here， the downfall of Dong Zhou is the best and possibly the best episode of the overall story， but everything outside of that is a maelstrom of names and chaos which left me baffled。 Though I admit it was exciting。 I felt at that point that a full version of the story would have been far more beneficial than an abridgement as it would have allowed things to slow down and let me get to know the characters and find my footing in the world。The preThree Kingdoms era ends about the time of the death of Lu Bu。 I was surprised he died so early as he's become one of the most recognisible figures from the story。 But he kicks it well before the three kingdoms are established。 This leads us into the longest period of the story where we have Xuande， Cao Cao and the Sun family facing off against each other。 At this point the pacing changes dramatically。 I don't know if that's because of what the abridgement choose to cut down on or if it's the natural pace of the book， but things get very slow from here on out。 It's easier to understand what's going on as our characters， their positions and their roles have been more firmly established， but part of me did miss the chaos and excitement of the first chapters as oft times it felt like very little was happening。 The stories center around Guan Yu here are no doubt the best。We transfer into the final section of the book slowly as the major figures all start to die off of natural causes and it is their children and grandchildren that take control， few to none of which had any set up or establishing moments prior。 Kong Ming becomes the only real source of focus for quite some time and I like his excursion to the Man tribes， but overall this part of the book felt weary and by that point I was looking forward to the end。 Which may very well be intentional as that's how the story ends up resolving itself too。 Not with a bang， but with a whimper。From the start I knew this is a story that could only exist in the form that it already does。 I think viewing this as one book is missing the forest from the trees。 As it's less a singular story and more a collection of folk tales。 It did not need to establish the characters like a regular novel because it expects it's readers to already be aware of them and their exploits。 It also comes with a massive amount of bias， I really can't compel myself to see Xuande as any more virtuous than the other factions no matter how the story tries to push his agenda。 Ultimately I can say it's better than some of the other classics I've read and I can understand why it's become as monumental a story as it is， but personally if I'm ever to revisit this again， I'll be sticking to the particular episodes of it that appealed to me rather than the story as a whole。 。。。more
Joan Rabe
，
I’ve decided to stop reading this edition because the story is too sketchy and hard to follow。 Instead I’m going to try reading the version at three kingdoms。com which has lots of explanatory notes。
Jim Grimsley
，
This is a very old novel， the actual date of its writing in dispute， its authorship also in dispute， written out by hand， copied so many times that the state of the manuscript itself is the subject of much scholarship; the novel was revised by a writer in the Ming dynasty who， according to the translator， improved the novel greatly in form。 It is a magnficent piece of work; like much that is magnificent， it exists in its own terms。 Its ambition and scope sit like a mountain on the literary lands This is a very old novel， the actual date of its writing in dispute， its authorship also in dispute， written out by hand， copied so many times that the state of the manuscript itself is the subject of much scholarship; the novel was revised by a writer in the Ming dynasty who， according to the translator， improved the novel greatly in form。 It is a magnficent piece of work; like much that is magnificent， it exists in its own terms。 Its ambition and scope sit like a mountain on the literary landscape。 There is truly nothing else like it。 The story of the collapse - or rather the long， slow death - of the Han dynasty and the emergence of three stable kingdoms from the wreckage。 There are at least a thousand characters in the book， many of them major， all playing a vivid， palpable role in the proceedings， whether for a paragraph or for many chapters。 The bulk of the book takes up the long conflict between Cao Cao， a noble who captures the last of the Han emperors and uses him as the center of a northern kingdom， and Liu Bei， a distant relative of the Han who attempts to defend the dynasty and reunite the many parts of China that have fallen away from the emperor's rule。 This is not a modern novel in which characters deliberate about their actions and reveal themselves in psychological detail; this is a saga， an epic， in which the people are indicated by their deeds， their pronouncements， with an occasional reference to their private moments， their thoughts， their longings。 Such a vivid piece of writing， it was exhausting at times to read it， coming in at over 2200 pages in four volumes。 This is a book to study， one of the central texts of Chinese history and culture， helping to define the nation's ideas of legitimate rule， politics， honor， and military craft。 There are moments of startling savagery: a meal in which the host， starving in a time of famine， cooks his wife to serve her up for dinner; the killing of a eunuch in the bedchamber of an emperor in which his murderers eat his raw flesh。 There is no other experience in reading like this one。 The kind of novel that a writer devotes decades to producing， the bulk of his life's energies， perhaps - though the reputed author is also said to have written The Water Margin （Outlaws of the Marsh）， a book that is equally long。 。。。more
Nhi Vu
，
Thực sự đây là một tác phẩm bất hủ của La Quán Trung， truyện rất dài， tuy nhiên rất cuốn hút người đọc。 Tuy nhiên phần sau khi Lưu Bị và Gia Cát Lượng chết， hầu như các bậc anh hào đều ít tiếng tăm， khiến cho cảm giác đọc truyện lúc đó bị hụt hẫng và không còn được nhiều cảm giác hứng thú như phần trước。
Jam
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 When Guan Yu died I actually had to put the book down for a couple of days。 Learned a lot about tactics during warfare， and how to better write it in my own works， should I ever get to them。 If you know nothing of the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history， this is as good a starting place as any — all the important figures are represented; from Guan Yu， to Cao Cao， and Sima Yi。 Also a great jumping off point if you ever want to study it more。
Randall R
，
The Penguin Classics version is an abridged translation， constructed in the prose of a 3rd grade book report。 Here is an excerpt from the book， as an example:"But while Nan'an and Anding have now fallen to Kong Ming， nothing has been heard from Tianshui。 So Wei Yan is sent to take that city。 The governor of Tianshui is Ma Zun。 On hearing of the siege of Nan'an he held a council。 Then Pei Xu had arrived with his 'letter' asking for help for Nan'an。 He had been followed the next day by a messenger The Penguin Classics version is an abridged translation， constructed in the prose of a 3rd grade book report。 Here is an excerpt from the book， as an example:"But while Nan'an and Anding have now fallen to Kong Ming， nothing has been heard from Tianshui。 So Wei Yan is sent to take that city。 The governor of Tianshui is Ma Zun。 On hearing of the siege of Nan'an he held a council。 Then Pei Xu had arrived with his 'letter' asking for help for Nan'an。 He had been followed the next day by a messenger saying that Anding had moved to the rescue of Nan'an， so when would the Tianshui men move likewise？"The majority of the book reads similarly to the above paragraph。 I regret buying this abridged translation。 。。。more
Faye
，
It's hard to rate something this old and widely respected， because most of my ratings are based on plot， characters， writing style， and things like that， and that doesn't really apply。 All I can say is。。。 I'm glad I've read it （though abridged in kind of annoying ways）， but I didn't fully enjoy it。 There are so many characters （soooo many） trying to win each other's power， and it all gets rather repetitive。 There were enjoyable chapters/moments， but overall I didn't find it as gripping as I expe It's hard to rate something this old and widely respected， because most of my ratings are based on plot， characters， writing style， and things like that， and that doesn't really apply。 All I can say is。。。 I'm glad I've read it （though abridged in kind of annoying ways）， but I didn't fully enjoy it。 There are so many characters （soooo many） trying to win each other's power， and it all gets rather repetitive。 There were enjoyable chapters/moments， but overall I didn't find it as gripping as I expected to。 。。。more
Ian Williamson
，
Honestly very interesting to read。 I think I really lack the scope and depth of all the characters and Kingdoms in the book， due to my ignorance of Chinese folklore and geography。 But I do enjoy how this is written partially as a familial legacy dynasty， part poems and lore， and part historical record of battles。
Stephen Durrant
，
One of the six classic Chinese novels from the Ming-Qing period。 "Three Kingdoms" is a historical novel but reflects， as the narrative progresses， the rise of its central characters from a historical to a legendary， and then， towards the end， an almost mythological status。 That is， it witnesses in its very narrative a sort of apotheosis of Lord Guan， Liu Bei， Zhang Fei， and Zhu Geliang， which any visitor to various temples in the contemporary Chinese world might still see enshrined in brightly c One of the six classic Chinese novels from the Ming-Qing period。 "Three Kingdoms" is a historical novel but reflects， as the narrative progresses， the rise of its central characters from a historical to a legendary， and then， towards the end， an almost mythological status。 That is， it witnesses in its very narrative a sort of apotheosis of Lord Guan， Liu Bei， Zhang Fei， and Zhu Geliang， which any visitor to various temples in the contemporary Chinese world might still see enshrined in brightly colored and dramatically posed statuary。 But most of all this is an engaging and sometimes exciting tale of loyalty， warfare， military strategy and the ever-shifting world of political alliances。 Moss Robert's translation is rich and readable--in fact， it is something of a masterpiece。 His full translation （2000+ pages） now awaits on my shelves。 。。。more
Stephen Phillips
，
I loved this podcast， and I'm going to listen to his next one （once he's gotten a bit further in it）。 I have quite a connection to China but I didn't know the background to a lot of the Three Kingdoms stuff I saw around， nor did I have all the necessary cultural references to understand it all。 But this podcast condenses it and gives it a good comprehensive background。 This story has stood as a classic in China for many hundreds of years so I don't need to say the story and characters are compel I loved this podcast， and I'm going to listen to his next one （once he's gotten a bit further in it）。 I have quite a connection to China but I didn't know the background to a lot of the Three Kingdoms stuff I saw around， nor did I have all the necessary cultural references to understand it all。 But this podcast condenses it and gives it a good comprehensive background。 This story has stood as a classic in China for many hundreds of years so I don't need to say the story and characters are compelling。 But they are！ 。。。more
Ngai Ming Pui Janice
，
在<<三國演義>>中，我最喜愛的人物是諸葛亮，字孔明，又稱臥龍先生，他身材高大，頭戴綸巾，身披鶴髦，手搖羽扇。諸葛亮的足智多謀留下許多讓人津津樂道的事蹟，如﹕空城計、草船借箭、借東風、三氣周瑜、七擒孟獲……，是一位相當傑出的軍事家。從諸葛亮面對司馬懿的十萬大軍，兵臨城下也臨危不懼，設下「空城計」擊退敵軍。另外，諸葛亮在「草船借箭」，輕易「借」了十萬多枝箭。從上述例子可以看到，諸葛亮充份展露他善用智慧解決問題的才華，他的足智多謀實在無容置疑，留給人們無限的景仰與懷念。
Alison Wong
，
It took me four months to read the entire novel and now that I have finished it， I find that I am no longer the same person than I was at the beginning。It’s not that I didn’t know the story before— I had read the English translation twenty years ago， dated boys who loved it for its strategy and military theories; seen at least two TV series， watched John Woo’s magnificent ‘Red Cliff’ movies and read the picture-books to my kids。 But reading 「三國演義」at this age， in this language， at this point in C It took me four months to read the entire novel and now that I have finished it， I find that I am no longer the same person than I was at the beginning。It’s not that I didn’t know the story before— I had read the English translation twenty years ago， dated boys who loved it for its strategy and military theories; seen at least two TV series， watched John Woo’s magnificent ‘Red Cliff’ movies and read the picture-books to my kids。 But reading 「三國演義」at this age， in this language， at this point in China’s history， made me focus on profoundly different things， like the unrelenting passage of time; the insignificance of individual lives be they simple villagers or kings and generals; and how the imagery， language and sentence structures support and promote this way of thinking。While I once found it unacceptable that individual story arcs were abruptly and sometimes brutally unresolved， I found this time round that there is a certain beauty to the continuous human struggle。 For if we did not continue to desire， how can we continue to live？ There is comfort to living in a world that is bigger than yourself。 I think I finally understand why this called the ROMANCE of the Three Kingdoms。 。。。more
Will Norton
，
Very insightful on the workings of the Asian mind when it comes to honor， loyalty， and brotherhood and how we relate to one another across cultures。 Comparative to the Iliad and Shakespeare， it offers the story of the Machiavellian tactics of Cao Cao and the virtuous leader in the form of Lui Bei。 This relationship between two of the three kingdoms covers the first 80 of the 120 chapters although the third kingdom also plays a role。 I tend to agree with the poet's quotes throughout the book that Very insightful on the workings of the Asian mind when it comes to honor， loyalty， and brotherhood and how we relate to one another across cultures。 Comparative to the Iliad and Shakespeare， it offers the story of the Machiavellian tactics of Cao Cao and the virtuous leader in the form of Lui Bei。 This relationship between two of the three kingdoms covers the first 80 of the 120 chapters although the third kingdom also plays a role。 I tend to agree with the poet's quotes throughout the book that Lui Bei is the more deserving of the Han throne and that Cao Cao was the brutal traitor that betrayed the throne of Han。 The style is also unusual which is why I mention the Iliad since it is somewhat of the same method in how the prose plays out。 。。。more
Asaria
，
The first volume is the best。 Personally I found Cao Cao to be a very intriguing antagonist。 Hate or love him， he forces you to take sides。 The novel itself is rather dry， probably only interesting to someone fascinated by Chinese culture。 Or it's translation's blame， I can't say for sure。Does it make me Wei Kingdom fangirl？ Mang rulers were awesome though， especially the only commanding lady in the novel。 Overall， while not the most enjoyable read ever， there are many episodes that are recompen The first volume is the best。 Personally I found Cao Cao to be a very intriguing antagonist。 Hate or love him， he forces you to take sides。 The novel itself is rather dry， probably only interesting to someone fascinated by Chinese culture。 Or it's translation's blame， I can't say for sure。Does it make me Wei Kingdom fangirl？ Mang rulers were awesome though， especially the only commanding lady in the novel。 Overall， while not the most enjoyable read ever， there are many episodes that are recompensating more boring parts。But Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei， I won't forget them as one of the most annoying leads I have a （dis）pleasure to encounter in literature。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Three Kingdoms
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Three Kingdoms&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Three Kingdoms&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0