The good earth is a novel by pearl s buck the novel is set in china in the times when the last emperor was ruling it is a compelling story of a honest farmer wang lung and his selfless wife o lan the book recreates the historical period when huge changes occurred in the last century in china and how it affected its people it paints a picture of the troubled times wang lung and his family face when china is at the brink of a revolution you can be able relate to wang lung’s and his wife’s pain, suffering, pride, and a whole other gamut of emotions the novel explores the myriad of human emotions like passion, greed, and desires, and how they drive a human being to do good or evil it is about how the survival instinct can make one fight against all difficulties the novel was published as export edition in the year 2013 by washington square press it is available in paperback key features: the good earth is a classic novel which is sought after even today it had bagged the pulitzer award