Life and Death Are Wearing Me Out
Mo Yan · b. 1955 · China
Originally Shengsi Pilao (Chinese) · translated by Howard Goldblatt
Why it matters
A landlord executed in 1950 is reincarnated as donkey, ox, pig, and dog, watching half a century of Chinese history from the animals' eyes. Mo Yan's exuberant, carnal epic of the land reforms and the Mao era.
At a glance
magical realismepic
Difficulty 7/10fast pace540 pagesSprawling multi-narrator epic spanning five reincarnated lives and five decades.
Where to go next
Mo Yan · 1986Red SorghumLvl 7Fast paced
Mo Yan · 1992The Republic of WineLvl 8Medium pace
Mo Yan · 1996Big Breasts and Wide HipsLvl 8Fast paced
Mo Yan · 2009FrogLvl 6Medium pace
Gabriel García Márquez · 1967One Hundred Years of SolitudeLvl 6Medium pace
Lu Xun · 1921The Real Story of Ah-Q and Other TalesLvl 5Fast paced