Chinese novelist Mo Yan has won the 2012 Nobel Prize for Literature.
If you want to explore his work, we have linked to free samples of his work that are available in English–simply follow the links below. Here’s more about his career:
Through a mixture of fantasy and reality, historical and social perspectives, Mo Yan has created a world reminiscent in its complexity of those in the writings of William Faulkner and Gabriel García Márquez, at the same time finding a departure point in old Chinese literature and in oral tradition. In addition to his novels, Mo Yan has published many short stories and essays on various topics, and despite his social criticism is seen in his homeland as one of the foremost contemporary authors.
Six Free Samples of Mo Yan Books
(Includes Nobel Prize site commentary, if available)
Red Sorghum: A Novel of China: “The book consists of five stories that unfold and interweave in Gaomi in several turbulent decades in the 20th century, with depictions of bandit culture, the Japanese occupation and the harsh conditions endured by poor farm workers.”
Life and Death are Wearing Me Out: “uses black humour to describe everyday life and the violent transmogrifications in the young People’s Republic” (Kindle edition) (Nook edition)
Big Breasts and Wide Hips: “a broad historical fresco portraying 20th-century China through the microcosm of a single family.” (Kindle edition) (Nook edition)
The Republic of Wine (Kindle edition) (Nook edition)
The Garlic Ballads (Kindle edition here) (Nook edition)
Shifu, You’ll Do Anything For a Laugh (Kindle edition) (Nook edition)
We also discussed the Nobel Prize win on the Morning Media Menu. Press play below to listen…
Editor’s Note: The original version of this post contained an erroneous title.