Asian Addicts Anonymous

**Post by nichan**

Although I haven’t watched it in awhile, I really love the movie “The Last Emperor”, even with the really goofy sounding voices. The problem is, it doesn’t make a whole heap of sense, and every time I watch it, I’m left wondering what the heck is going on.

…Imagine my surprise when I found out that there was a companion book written for it – “The Last Emperor” by Edward Behr!

This is a partial biography, partial history, written about the last of the Manchu emperors of China: Pu Yi. (I’ve seen it written “Pu Yi” and “Puyi”. I’m sticking with “Pu Yi” simply because that’s the way I’ve seen it written more often.) He came to power as a tiny child via his fascinating predecessor, the Empress Dowager Cixi (though she wasn’t technically his predecessor, she was one of those chicks who sort’ve ruled everything regardless of whether or not she was the one actually in charge), managed to be there to experience the collapse of the monarchy, and then somehow survived the turmoil that frequently ran rampant in China between the early 1900s and the late 60s. Pu Yi’s life, sadly, isn’t nearly as interesting as Cixi’s, but the book, while not being terribly deep, and sometimes too detailed or not detailed enough, gives an eclectic and interesting view of modern Chinese history. (Or as modern as the late 80s, since that’s when it was written.) …I say “eclectic” since I’ve never read another book that covered most of what this one did. Plus it has pictures! (Not enough, but still…!)

The book is supposed to go with the movie, so I’ll mention first that, as far as these things go, the book fills in so, so many blanks that the movie just skims over. The problem is, it also proves how many creative lapses in reality there were in the plot. Yeah, sure, now I know what the heck was going on, but I’ll also probably be annoyed as all get out the next time I watch it because things aren’t happening accurately.

As for the book itself, it’s mostly very interesting. He tells the story in order rather than jumping back and forth like the movie (except for how the beginning is actually the end). Also, he occasionally barges into the narrative to remind you that he was the one who wrote it, and he was the one who did the interviews, and he happens to have opinions on the topic. It’s not terribly intrusive, though. What is intrusive is the random jaunting into history. This dude isn’t a very good history writer, and the sections where he provides (altogether too much) back story tend to drag on mercilessly. However, the whole book is pretty easy to read, taking very little time to get through. His history sections might slow things down a bit, but… Well… It’s not like you’re going to find yourself hopelessly mired in the muck for hundreds of pages on end or anything. If you just stick with it, it’ll go away after awhile.

He covers Pu Yi’s life from start to finish: his childhood, his personality, the time when he was no longer an emperor, the time when he became an emperor in Manchukuo, his capture by the Soviets, his transformation by the Chinese, and his life as a Communist civilian. The first chunk is somewhat stiff, as though he’s getting into his story; the middle part is almost tedious in how dragged out it is; the end feels horrendously rushed, as though he burned himself out in the middle. However, the book as a whole is still interesting. He gives details about the every day life of Pu Yi, including his interactions with his wives, family members, consultants, and captors. He also gets annoyed when he can’t figure things out… Like, you can tell this is a book based on a movie due to how badly he wants to focus on Pu Yi’s sex life. However, unluckily for him, history doesn’t always provide such details, and Pu Yi’s naughty habits always hover vaguely out of his reach. …Oh! And, frequently, he seems to forget this is a book about Pu Yi, and wanders off on other topics. It always comes back to Pu Yi, but it’s not always about Pu Yi.

So, anyway! Would I suggest this book? I would if you’ve watched “The Last Emperor” enough to wonder what in the world is going on, and you’re curious enough to find out. This book doesn’t delve deeply into history, and it sometimes forgets Pu Yi altogether, but… It certainly helps!

If you’re into Chinese history, and looking at this as a strict biography, on the other hand… Well, I did actually learn a few things, and he covered topics that I haven’t seen in other books. But, um… It’s not a history book. It’s a movie book. It’s a book you should read to accompany a movie.