The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck

Wang Lung is a poor young farmer in rural, turn-of-the-century China. During the time in which the novel takes place, Chinese society is showing signs of modernization while remaining deeply connected to ancient traditions and customs. When Wang Lung reaches a marriageable age, his father approaches the powerful local Hwang family to ask if they have a spare slave who could marry his son. The Hwangs agree to sell Wang a 20-year-old slave named O-lan, who becomes his wife.

Together, Wang Lung and O-lan and they have a good harvest from their land. O-lan becomes pregnant, and Wang Lung is overjoyed when O-lan’s first child is a son. Meanwhile, the powerful Hwang family lives decadently—the husband is obsessed with women, and the wife is an opium addict. Because of their costly habits, the Hwangs fall on hard times, and Wang Lung is able to purchase a piece of their fertile rice land.

Wang Lung is forced to take his family to a southern city for the winter. There, O-lan and the children beg while Wang Lung earns money by transporting people in a rented rickshaw. They earn just enough money to eat. Wang Lung begins to despair of ever making enough money to return to his land. Eventually, a group of poor and desperate people ransacks a rich man’s home, and Wang Lung and O-lan join them. Wang Lung steals a pile of gold coins. With this new wealth, he moves the family back home.

Back in his rural village, Wang Lung becomes obsessed with Lotus, a beautiful, delicate prostitute with bound feet who becomes his concubine.When O-lan becomes terminally ill, Wang Lung regrets his cruel words and comes to appreciate everything his wife has done for him. with his family, leaving his own house to his uncle’s family.After O-lan’s death, Wang Lung’s sons begin to rebel against his plans for their life. They do not want to work as farmers and do not have his devotion to the land, and theyplan to sell the family land and divide the money among themselves, signaling their final break with the land that made them wealthy.

The Good Earth is an historical novel that you can't read in a few days, that's both the strong and weak part of it. To be honest, I don't regret that I finished this book. After reading more than the half of it, my attention to the story was gone, and I dreaded reading the final part.
I think it is a good pick if you are interested in fiction about China, altough I as a lover of that genre didn't think it is the best pick, there is certainly better fiction in this topic to choose from.