by Dai Sijie
Deceptively small, yet monumentally profound
Reviewed by: Helen Harvey
About Helen Harvey
Ask any fiction author about what subjects you should
write, and, invariably, the answer you'll get is
"Write about what you know."
Little wonder then, that Chinese born filmmaker, Dai
Sijie, based this book upon Chairman Mao's Cultural
Revolution, which saw intellectuals banished to
peasant villages for re-education, since he, too,
endured such an experience.
This book is small in size, but don't be deceived.
Quality should not be judged by quantity. What lies
within this beautifully written, delightfully funny,
and painfully sad, social commentary of a novel is
absolutely exquisite.
The 17-year-old protagonist, and his best friend Luo
are condemned to four years re-education for the crime
of being the sons of doctors. Finding themselves in a
remote mountain village, they are surrounded by
squalor, and reduced to a grueling daily routine of
tasks such as navigating treacherous paths, while
hauling buckets of excrement, which must be disposed
of.
Their only light in an extremely dark world comes when
they discover a hidden cache of Western literature.
Dickens, Tolstoy, Flaubert, and Balzac are among their
find, and they must use their ingenuity and cunning if
they are to have the pleasure of reading these
forbidden treasures without discovery and punishment.
With their books as inspiration, the boys become known
for their story-telling skills, and are commanded by
the village headman to perform narrations for the
pleasure of the villagers. Amongst those eager to
hear their tales is the beautiful daughter of the
local tailor who lives in a neighboring village, and
who, until then, has had no education. What
transpires in this short, yet bittersweet tale, is to
change all their lives.
This book serves as a remarkable lesson on a period in
contemporary history, which many of us would have
remained ignorant of , were it not for this poignant
and immensely readable account.
Click here to buy this book, or read more about it at Amazon.com: Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
Copyright © by Helen Harvey, 2002
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