The Noodle Maker - Softcover
From Mi Jian, the highly acclaimed Chinese dissident, comes a satirical novel about the absurdities of life in a post-Tiananmen China.
Two men meet for dinner each week. Over the course of one of these drunken evenings, the writer recounts the stories he would write, had he the courage: a young man buys an old kiln and opens a private crematorium, delighting in his ability to harass the corpses of police officers and Party secretaries, while swooning to banned Western music; a heartbroken actress performs a public suicide by stepping into the jaws of a wild tiger, watched nonchalantly by her ex-lover. Extraordinary characters inspire him, their lives pulled and pummeled by fate and politics, as if they are balls of dough in the hands of an all-powerful noodle maker.
Ma Jian's satirical masterpiece allows us a humorous, yet profound, glimpse of those struggling to survive under a system that dictates their every move.
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From the Inside Flap:
From the award-winning author of Red Dust comes a virtuoso piece of "red humour" -- a darkly funny novel about the absurdities and cruelties of life in modern China.
Every week, a writer of political propaganda and a professional blood donor meet for dinner. They are unlikely friends -- one of them tortured by his "art," the other fat and wealthy from the earthy business of providing spare blood for the citizens of China. Over the course of one especially gastronomic evening, the writer starts to complain about his latest Party commission: the story of an ordinary soldier who sacrifices his life to the revolutionary cause. This is not the novel he wants to write, he tells his friend. Inside his head lives an unwritten book about the people he knows or sees everyday on the streets -- people whose lives are far more representative of the world in which he lives.
About the Author:
Every week, a writer of political propaganda and a professional blood donor meet for dinner. They are unlikely friends -- one of them tortured by his "art," the other fat and wealthy from the earthy business of providing spare blood for the citizens of China. Over the course of one especially gastronomic evening, the writer starts to complain about his latest Party commission: the story of an ordinary soldier who sacrifices his life to the revolutionary cause. This is not the novel he wants to write, he tells his friend. Inside his head lives an unwritten book about the people he knows or sees everyday on the streets -- people whose lives are far more representative of the world in which he lives.
Ma Jian is the author of Red Dust, which won the Thomas Cook Prize in the UK. His most recent novel is Stick Out Your Tongue (FSG). He now lives in England.
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- PublisherFarrar, Straus and Giroux
- Publication date2005
- ISBN 10 009945906X
- ISBN 13 9780099459064
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages192
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The Noodle Maker (Paperback)
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. 'Playful and wonderfully dark, The Noodle Maker confirms Ma Jian as a Chinese Kundera. The funniest book I've read in a long time' Philip MarsdenEvery week, a writer of political propaganda and a professional blood donor meet for dinner. They are unlikely friends - one of them tortured by his 'art', the other fat and wealthy from the earthy business of providing spare blood for the citizens of China.Over the course of one especially gastronomic evening, the writer starts to complain about his latest Party commission- the story of an ordinary soldier who sacrifices his life to the revolutionary cause. This is not the novel he wants to write, he tells his friend. Inside his head lives an unwritten book about the people he knows or sees everyday on the streets - people who lives are far more representative of the world in which he lives. Every week, a writer of political propaganda and a professional blood donor meet for dinner. Inside his head lives an unwritten book about the people he knows or sees everyday on the streets - people who lives are far more representative of the world in which he lives. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780099459064
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Book Description Paperback / softback. Condition: New. New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. Every week, a writer of political propaganda and a professional blood donor meet for dinner. Inside his head lives an unwritten book about the people he knows or sees everyday on the streets - people who lives are far more representative of the world in which he lives. Seller Inventory # B9780099459064
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Book Description Condition: New. 2012. New Ed. Paperback. Every week, a writer of political propaganda and a professional blood donor meet for dinner. They are unlikely friends - one of them tortured by his 'art', the other fat and wealthy from the earthy business of providing spare blood for the citizens of China. Num Pages: 192 pages. BIC Classification: FA. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 197 x 134 x 12. Weight in Grams: 148. . . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland. Seller Inventory # V9780099459064
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