The Examination

I got this book because it was supposed to be about the Civil Service Exam that Confucius created. It does go into detail about what it was like to take the exam centuries after Confucius died, but there was a lot of other stuff that felt completely unnecessary. All in all, I say: SKIP IT. Amazon describes the plot as, "Fifteen-year-old Hong and his older brother Chen face famine, flood, pirates, and jealous rivals on their journey through fifteenth century China as Chen pursues his calling as a scholar and Hong becomes involved with a secret society known as the White Lotus."