Overview

A lame joke can be a crushing experience The people of Yanjin know to always have a few jokes on hand. For three thousand years, they have been terrorised by Hua Erniang, a forsaken spirit that rules over their dreams. Failing to amuse this supernatural guest means not waking up at all, crushed by her jilted heart which has calcified into a mountain. Growing up inside a town adapting to socialist ideals, Mingliang's life is beset with hardship and adversity that leaves his family in tatters. Seeking fortune elsewhere, he heads west across China's vast central plain, encountering nothing but restless souls mortgaged to debts from former lives, each unwilling to move on for their own reasons. No matter how many times you try to start afresh, you can only run so far from a broken home. Some wounds take more than a lifetime to heal, but in the meantime, a few wisecracks tucked into the back pocket won't hurt.

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9781838905842

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Reviews

“His works are literary and philosophical, while at the same time very readable--a rare combination.” — Sabina Knight, professor and author of Chinese Literature: A Very Short Introduction

Author Information

Liu Zhenyun was born in 1958 in Yanjin, Henan Province. He graduated from the Chinese Department of Peking University and is now a professor at the School of Arts, Renmin University of China. He has written a variety of novels and short stories, winning many awards including the prestigious Mao Dun Literature Prize. Liu's works have been translated into 23 languages, and in 2018, he was honoured with France's Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters for his outstanding contributions to world literature. Liu wrote the screenplay for the 2012 film Remembering 1942, adapted from his novel of the same name, winning the AIC Award for Best Cinematography at the International Rome Film Festival. The screenplay for the 2016 film I Am Not Madame Bovary was also written by Liu and adapted from his novel I Did Not Kill My Husband. The film won multiple awards including the Golden Shell for Best Film at the 64th San Sebastian Film Festival.

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