Land of Big Numbers: Stories

Few of the stories were quite interesting (Lulu, Land of Big Numbers, Gubeikou Spirit) but the rest ended abruptly, and it felt like an style which I could not really understand or get myself to like.

This past few months I've been interested in reading books by international authors because they give me a new perspective of life. However, with this book I've realized even if two authors are from the same country, the reading experience is completely different. Land of Big Numbers shows the reality of Chinese culture, history and even traditions. I loved how the stories were intertwined, but also showed different aspects of the Chinese culture. In the past I've read other books by Chinese authors, but with this one specially I felt a sense of connection. The authors writing style and description were deep, and I felt like here writing spoke to me in a personal level. That's the appeal of this book. Even though I liked some stories more than others, I still recommend it because every story makes you pause and think. I definitely want to read more books by this author!

3.75

4.5. This book was absolutely stunning. This authors writing style was simply gorgeous. This collection tackles the topic of modern China, its culture and history and politics and frames each story in a truly compelling way. Some stories are more surrealist but the collection as a whole is very realistic and grounded. There are dashes of magical realism but it isn't an experimental collection. Some of the sentences in this collection were so beautiful and I found every single story so strong. This is a knock out of a collection. It deals with Chinese identity in America, communism in China, relationships between parents and children, lovers, friends and so much more. My favourite story was the last one in which a group of Chinese commuters are trapped in a train station for weeks on end due to governmental regulations. One of the strongest short story collections I have ever read. I highly recommend.

Thanks to the author Te-Ping Chen, Mariner Books and Netgalley for a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the exception of short story collections: Every single one is pretty great.