The Four Books

Shortlisted for The Man Booker International Prize 2016
In the 99th district of a sprawling labour camp, the Author, Musician, Scholar, Theologian and Technician - and hundreds just like them - are undergoing Re-education, to restore their revolutionary zeal and credentials. In charge of this process is the Child, who delights in draconian rules, monitoring behaviour and confiscating treasured books.
But when bad weather arrives, followed by the 'three bitter years', the intellectuals are abandoned by the regime and left on their own to survive. Divided into four narratives, The Four Books tells the story of the Great Famine, one of China's most devastating and controversial periods.

Yan Lianke was born in 1958 in Henan province, China. He is the author of numerous novels and short-story collections, including Lenin's Kisses, Serve the People!, and Dream of Ding Village, which was shortlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize and the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize, and adapted into a film. He was a finalist for the Man Booker International Prize and the winner of the Franz Kafka Prize and two of China's most prestigious literary awards, the Lu Xun Prize and the Lao She Award.