City of Tranquil Light

A Novel

By: Bo Caldwell

Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot

Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

Will Kiehn is seemingly destined for life as a humble farmer in the Midwest when, having felt a call from God, he travels to the vast North China Plain in the early twentieth century. There he is surprised by love and weds a strong and determined fellow missionary, Katherine. They soon find themselves witnesses to the crumbling of a more than two-thousand-year-old dynasty that plunges the country into decades of civil war. As the couple works to improve the lives of the people of Kuang P’ing Ch’eng - City of Tranquil Light, a place they come to love - and face incredible hardship, will their faith and relationship be enough to sustain them?

©2010 Bo Caldwell (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“A remarkable evocation of another time and place as well as a deeply moving love story.” (Ron Rash, author of Serena)

“City of Tranquil Light is a poem in prose form, and it will lift any reader’s spirit as it lifted mine.” (Jay Parini, author of The Last Station)

"Told through Will and Katherine’s alternating viewpoints, and inspired by the lives of the author’s maternal grandparents, City of Tranquil Light is a tender and elegiac portrait of a young marriage set against the backdrop of the shifting face of a beautiful but torn nation. A deeply spiritual book, it shows how those who work to teach others often have the most to learn and is further evidence that Bo Caldwell writes “vividly and with great historical perspective.” ( San Jose Mercury News)

What We're Here For

This beautifully written historical story of early twentieth century China has inspiration for us here and now. It's the story of how love, faith, and service to God, can give meaning to individual lives. This book illustrates what we're all searching for and how a few people found it.

Powerful Spiritual Resolve

If you could sum up City of Tranquil Light in three words, what would they be?

This was a marvelous account of a missionary couple's powerful spiritual resolve. This was a moving, brilliant, and inspiring story. Thank you, Bo Caldwell for giving us this must-read.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Katharine - she was a soft and yielding healer and spiritual leader.

What does Bronson Pinchot bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Ease in listening.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. It was more powerful to let it soak in and contemplate the issues brought forth.

Compelling story told well

Since I'm not a big fan of Christian lit I didn't expect to like this much, but the research and writing are so good that I was completely drawn intothe story. The narration is excellent, with good variation between the voices.

Narrator made it difficult to follow

Great story, however the male narrator barely changed his voice when reading between the alternating viewpoints of the husband and wife. I will pick up the book to read this one again.

Great Story

Very touching story and performance. They suffered a lot yet Thanked God for letting them serve

Inspiring

This made me appreciate other faiths and the good just a few can do through example. I also was inspired to live the gospel of Jesus Christ better!

Lovely Book for our Noisy World

Loved this book; and despite the many trials and tribulations, and the vast amount of suffering in China, there is a peacefulness the book brings as well. A break from today‘s news of the world, and yet a guide for how to process it, too.

Amazing, must read

The story is incredibly compelling. It portrays true Christian faith—grit and all. Christ is shown to be real, beautiful, and loving. The theme of forgiveness could resonate with any reader. The first person narration really brings you close to the heart of the characters. I consider this a must read!

The narration is excellent as well.

Profoundly moving

An evocative love story on several levels: the love between a man and a woman; their love for their adopted country, China, and its people; their love for their friends AND their enemies; and fundamentally, the love between God and his children. This novel rings with truth. It resonates within my soul and I found it profoundly moving.
It would have benefited from a second narrator, a female. But still, a wonderful audio book!

Clean, interesting and a good storyline

After having living in China for 2 years with my family I related a lot to this book. Although, I lived there in 2015 I could relate or fathom living there in the early 1900’s. China is a part of me and my family and always will be. Great book!