The thirteen stories in this collection are vintage Can Xue. Similar to her novels (The Last Lover, Frontier) and other collections (Vertical Motion) the focus is less on what happens and more on the experience of reading.
"Mother River" is a short bildungsroman of a young man who decides to become a fisherman (and crafter of spherical maps) and discovers that performing the role itself is more important than the number of fish they catch.
Surreal, provocative, and unique, Mother River reinforces Can Xue's status as one of the most reward and complex writers working today--and a perennial favorite to win the Nobel Prize.
The thirteen stories in this collection are vintage Can Xue. Similar to her novels (The Last Lover, Frontier) and other collections (Vertical Motion) the focus is less on what happens and more on the experience of reading.
"Mother River" is a short bildungsroman of a young man who decides to become a fisherman (and crafter of spherical maps) and discovers that performing the role itself is more important than the number of fish they catch.
Surreal, provocative, and unique, Mother River reinforces Can Xue's status as one of the most reward and complex writers working today--and a perennial favorite to win the Nobel Prize.
In Mother River, Can Xue, one of China's most daring and visionary writers, invites us into a surreal landscape where reality is as fluid as a river itself. This collection of thirteen stories weaves together vivid, dreamlike narratives that challenge our perceptions of time, identity, and existence.
Through her signature blend of the absurd and the profound, Can Xue explores the fragile boundaries betwen the known and unknown, between humanity and nature. In these tales, a man tries to chase down an ellusive golden peacock, a woman communicates with mysterious, shifting forms of light, and the river that runs through a small village seems to pulse with memories of its own.
Surreal, provocative, and unique, Mother River reinforces Can Xue's status as one of the most rewarding and complex writers working today--and a perennial favorite to win the Nobel Prize.