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Lenin's Kisses by Yan Lianke (view source)
Revision as of 11:44, 2 October 2020
, 11:44, 2 October 2020no edit summary
Often when the translator introduces a novel with their notes, this is dangerous territory. They often reveal unwelcome plot spoilers, making it better to read at the end of the book rather than at the beginning. Not so here. Rojas presents a rich commentary and background to the book, without any plot spoilers, that genuinely adds to the reader's experience.
He emphasises the importance of the 'out of joint' nature of the narrative, with summer snows and oft noted variations in seasonal expectations as well as the jumping around between present and past. He also comments on Lianke's brushes with censorship and it's a fair bet that the disabled of Liven are an allegory for the plight of a writer living in a censored world. Yes, they can still achieve often remarkable things, and things that are different from what they might do without that censorship, but in the end , the able -bodied, 'wholers' in charge generally come out on top.
Our grateful thanks to the kind people at Chatto & Windus for sending us this book. We also have a review of [[The Four Books by Yan Lianke]].
If you enjoyed this then you might also enjoy another glimpse of socialism in fiction with [[The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson]] while if the whole issue of censorship of authors interests you then [[Joseph Anton by Salman Rushdie]] is well worth reading.