Wang Xiaobo seems to be one of the most popular 20th century writers in China, but we had to wait for the 25th anniversary of his death to get an English translation of this breakthrough novel. It’s a black comedy in which the technical college lecturer Wang Er tells us about his struggle with petty authority and looks back on his alternately horrific and comic experiences during the Cultural Revolution.

The satire, with its condom jokes, frenetic sexual activity and the narrator’s work situation set against a background of real human suffering, is very reminiscent of a Tom Sharpe novel. This being China, we also get a lot of very strong, three-dimensional female characters, so there isn’t quite that feel of schoolboy sniggering that you might expect. Hiding behind all the sexual high-jinks is a perfectly serious novel about ordinary people coping with political catastrophe. Fascinating, and very entertaining, if a little gruesome at times. ( )

This book was written in 1996, less than a year before the author died (in his 40's). It reflects a lot of his life during which - during the Great Cultural Revolution (1966-78) - he, along with millions of other young adults, were ordered to go into the countryside to work on farms, build roads & bridges, and do other work with their hands, which was supposed to imbue them with righteousness - or vigor as Communist youths. There were many sessions during which "cadres" - people being or who had become vigorous Communists - confessed their "crimes" to the public, at which times the gathered throng of hundreds or thousands of people harrarrased, beat & threw things at the confessor, which could have been anyone within the area & from which no one was exempt. The impact on the author's life riddled the remainder of his life with cynicism and bitterness, confusion and loss of relationships.

This is a tough, uncomfortable book to read. It is also very well done and believable. It has only recently been translated. ( )