The Colonel and the Eunuch by Mai Jia
A literary coming-of-age story set in twentieth-century China. The Colonel is an almost mythic figure shrouded in the tragedy of war and history but why does everyone call him 'the Eunuch'?
Reading this book is akin to summiting a perilous peak, trekking upwards until a faint path reveals itself, then looking back on the expansive view below.. Mai Jia takes many risks, occasionally writing himself into what seem to be impossible situations, but he always dances away from disaster. We fear for him, but then we are forced to admire his skill even more -- Mo Yan, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature
The novel's disgraced Colonel is emblematic of our parents' generation. The Colonel and the Eunuch is a cello sonata for our fathers -- Su Tong, winner of the Mao Dun Literature Prize
Mai Jia's masterpiece; it's both perfectly representative of his work, while also being completely different. I think the term 'hypnagogia' – that transitional state between dreams and reality – might be the best one to describe the book -- Wong Kar-wai
With its story of great changes across history, its melding of deceitful battlefields with every day life, and its plots and characters that are by turns startling and touching, The Colonel and the Eunuch leads us to an understanding of the inevitability and frustration of existence. In the end, the hardest code to decipher turns out to be life itself. * David Der-Wei Wang *
Uses the mythic adventures of its protagonist to connect the dots of China's 20th century history... In this latest work, Mai Jia, noted for his spy novels, leaves his comfort zone to explore the mysteries of human nature... [A] testament to the author's ambition and commitment to his artform * Southern Metropolis Daily *
The novel's disgraced Colonel is emblematic of our parents' generation. The Colonel and the Eunuch is a cello sonata for our fathers -- Su Tong, winner of the Mao Dun Literature Prize
Mai Jia's masterpiece; it's both perfectly representative of his work, while also being completely different. I think the term 'hypnagogia' – that transitional state between dreams and reality – might be the best one to describe the book -- Wong Kar-wai
With its story of great changes across history, its melding of deceitful battlefields with every day life, and its plots and characters that are by turns startling and touching, The Colonel and the Eunuch leads us to an understanding of the inevitability and frustration of existence. In the end, the hardest code to decipher turns out to be life itself. * David Der-Wei Wang *
Uses the mythic adventures of its protagonist to connect the dots of China's 20th century history... In this latest work, Mai Jia, noted for his spy novels, leaves his comfort zone to explore the mysteries of human nature... [A] testament to the author's ambition and commitment to his artform * Southern Metropolis Daily *
Mai Jia was born in 1964 and spent many years in the Chinese intelligence services. His first novel in English, Decoded, was published by Penguin Classics in 2002 and has been translated into over twenty languages. Jia's novels have sold over 10 million copies and he is a winner of the Mao Dun Literature Prize, the highest literary honour in China.
Dylan Levi King is a writer and Chinese translator based in Tokyo.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781804540268 |
| ISBN 10 | 1804540269 |
| Title | The Colonel and the Eunuch |
| Author | Mai Jia |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing PLC |
| Year published | 2024-05-09 |
| Number of pages | 400 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |