{"title":"Zhenyun Liu","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"someone-to-talk-to-book-zhenyun-liu-9780822370833","title":"Someone to Talk to","description":"Tofu peddler Yang Baishun is a man of few words and few friends. Unable to find meaningful companionship, he settles for a marriage of convenience. When his wife leaves him for another man he is left to care for his five-year-old stepdaughter Qiaoling, who is subsequently kidnapped, never to be seen by Yang again. Seventy years later we find Niu Aiguo, who, like Yang, struggles to connect with other people. As Niu begins learning about his recently deceased mother’s murky past it becomes clear that Qiaoling is the mysterious bond that links Yang and Niu. Originally published in China in 2009 and appearing in English for the first time, Liu Zhenyun’s award-winning Someone to Talk To highlights the contours of everyday life in pre- and post-Mao China, where regular people struggle to make a living and establish homes and families. Meditating on connection and loneliness, community and family, Someone to Talk To traces the unexpected and far-reaching ramifications of seemingly inconsequential actions, while reminding us all of the importance of communication.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49570333294865,"sku":"GOR012522861","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50362630930705,"sku":"CIN0822370832G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51008657490193,"sku":"NIN9780822370833","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0822370832.jpg?v=1761390398"},{"product_id":"strange-bedfellows-book-zhenyun-liu-9781621967026","title":"Strange Bedfellows","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eStrange Bedfellows\u003c\/em\u003e, a novel by Liu Zhenyun, China's most renowned writer of satire, and translated by Howard Goldblatt and Sylvia Lin, is a farcical tale of sibling devotion, sexual exploitation, and official corruption, all played out more or less in bed. Though a critique of new mercenary values, scam artists, and the common folks' vulnerability to scam artists, the novel is also an oblique compliment to the resourcefulness of these folks in a changing China.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe strange bedfellows from various parts of China include Niu Xiaoli, a country girl who borrows money from a hometown loan shark to find a new wife for her brother, whose first wife ran off with another man. When the second wife runs off with the money for the arrangement, Xiaoli goes on a search for her, only to end up prey to a high-class madam, who teaches her to become a fake-virgin prostitute. Xiaoli begins a life of fleecing the wealthy and powerful.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOne of Xiaoli's clients is Li Anbang, the governor of a certain province, who faces arrest and possible execution for bribe-taking. A practitioner of black magic recommends that Li sleeps with a virgin to solve his problems. And thereon the twists and turns continue.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLiu's trenchant criticism and fast-paced, humorous narrative is a delight to read. The irony that those exploiting the people end up being exploited themselves will not be lost on readers.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51040466927889,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51040469385489,"sku":"NIN9781621967026","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52535802200337,"sku":"NLS9781621967026","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1621967026.jpg?v=1751183126"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/en-gb\/collections\/author-books-by-zhenyun-liu.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}