Granta 169: China

Granta: The Magazine of New Writing #169

by Thomas Meaney (Editor), Yu Hua (Contributor), Mo Yan (Contributor)

No nation boasts more manufacturing capacity than the People's Republic of China, yet few countries' literary products are less known in the English-speaking world. Witnesses to the country's revolutionary modernisation, China's writers have experienced historical whiplashes and sprints forward on an extreme scale. The zhiqing - the educated youth whom Mao 'sent down' to the countryside and who experienced a decade of extreme austerity - are at a vast distance from the generations below them, who have lived through an epoch of self-assertion and creative dreaming. In China today, writers across generations look abroad, to new technologies, as well as to rich veins in the Chinese literary past for new modes of expression.Granta's special issue on the writing of contemporary China collects many of the mainland's most thrilling voices - poets, novelists and non-fiction writers, as well as philosophers. The edition pays acute attention to differences in region, generation and style.

Genres: China, Fiction, Short Stories, Short Story Collection, Essays, Poetry

334 pages, Paperback

Published November 12, 2024

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only my third Granta but this subject matter couldn’t have been better suited to my personal tastes, and it was a good one to pick up to restart my attempt to read more back issues (even though this is the current issue!).

The only real disappointments were the stories by Mo Yan and Yan Lianke, but all the others - particularly the Dongbei renaissance stories - were great.

[Paul Dembina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a particularly good edition of Granta introducing me to writers I'd not heard of before. The photo essays were also good

[Simon]

Picked this up because the cover looked nice :) Collection of short fiction, non-fiction stories as well as poetry, photography and an interview.

Can't really give an overall star rating, I connected with some stories more than others. Favourite was probably the non-fiction story "Adrift in the South" by Xiao Hai.

[Kamila Kunda · Rating 5 out of 5]

The one best Chinese text I read in February was the short story “Speedwell”, inspired by the literature of Roberto Bolaño (and reminding me of the film “Trenque Lauquen” by Laura Citarella), by Zhang Yueran from the 169th edition of Granta devoted to China. This story of mysterious personalities, search for an enigmatic author and friendship between three adults blew my mind and I dream of Lee Chang-dong adapting it into a film. So much cinematic potential here!

Overall, all of the texts are absolutely brilliant. Usually with such anthologies some stories are weaker but here it wasn’t the case. The young generation of writers showed they are truly great masters of words and the older generation (Yu Hua, Mo Yan and Yan Lianke) didn’t disappoint either.

I adored three short stories by authors representing the Dongbei Renaissance: unpredictable, lyrical, very fresh in approach. The non-fiction texts taught me a lot, together with the interview with Wu Qi, the editor of literary journal “One-Way Street Journal”, the magazine that specialises in cultivating avant-garde literature and new worker writing in China. It’s hard to find reliable information on the current state of the literary scene in China but here I was completely satisfied with the information I received.

The photography essays were quite interesting, however I prefer the artists I select myself and whose work I present in my project on Chinese photographers on Instagram.

The most elusive for me was poetry. I felt the translation from Chinese to English simply does not work well, and the tradition of poetry writing is not compatible with what we then see in English. Even if I get certain references (e.g. to Fernando Pessoa), some others are lost in translation and lack of shared culture.

New names to look out for, immense joy I got from reading this Granta edition, huge appreciation for how various Chinese authors perceive the world and shape stories - here kudos to Zhang Yueran, Jianan Qian, Wang Zhanghei, Ban Yu and Yang Zhihan. I couldn’t have wished for a more thrilling anthology of contemporary Chinese writing.

[Audrey Xia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genuinely very good short stories and glad to read more material from Chinese authors

[Lily Manning · Rating 4 out of 5]

I struggle to find anthologies/collections of stories gripping because they’re all so different and you have limited time to develop a relationship to the characters and landscape. But I loved some of these works, particularly the interview about how China’s literary world has changed in the past few decades. Censorship is a challenge for authors but storytelling finds a way to bend and flex w the political currents!

Also found the works from the “Dongbei Renaissance” (China’s rust-belt) so interesting and wanna learn more about this movement :P

[Jack Kennedy]

Very good selection!

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This issue of Granta, a literary magazine, contains all translations of works from China. It contains seven general works of fiction which I read. Three works of fiction from the Dongbei Revolution which I read. Two nonfiction essays which I read. Three photograph sections. And I did not read the interview or the poetry sections. I enjoy this magazine. So far I've read two issues. The stories in this magazine give us a look into Chinese life today and in the past. Sometimes, when the story takes place in a village, it is hard to tell if the story is historical or present as it sounds like the olden days to my ears. There are cars and TVs, but is it the 90s or is it now? I really couldn't tell. A few of the stories dealt with getting married before the age of 30. I found that similar to the Japanese books I read and other Asian cultures too. But overall, it gives us a look into life under communist rule, and it isn't a very bright one. Even though all the stories are written by different authors, they felt very interconnected, and there wasn't a bad one in the lot.

Synopses are Spoiler-Free.

1. Speedwell by Zhang Yueran - A bizarre story about 3 people who meet at a bookstore and decide to look for the elusive author of a very strange novel. It makes some sense at the end and I quite enjoyed it when all is said and done (4/5)

2. The Excitements of Spring by Zou Jingzhi - It's Springtime in Mao's Revolution. The educated youth have been sent to the farms to be reformed. Spring is mating season, and the story is about love even against the party line. Well-written and entertaining. (4/5)

3. Picun by Han Zhang - An essay about migrant workers lives. They are compared to illegals in the US. Then it specifically focuses on the workers who write and publish their writing. Going back to an early 20th-century form of literature called "worker's" literature. Covering migrant workers, migrant workers who write, and worker's literature, it doesn't go deep enough on any one of those topics, but it does show what a hard, low-class, poverty-line life they lead. (3/5)

4. The Piranhas by Jian Qian - A woman waits for a train to work and a puddle has formed on the tracks in this rainy season. There are red dots in the puddle, and an old man points out to her that they are piranhas. She continues to watch them every day, even coming on the weekends. It is a story that really doesn't have any point but is well-written and makes an interesting read. (3/5)

5. Take Me Out To the Ball Game by Ban Yu - A story of a man born at the wrong time. In a time of poverty and hard-to-come-by jobs, this is a period of the narrator's father's life that is hardscrabble and undone by sickness and an untrustworthy neighbour. An intelligent and informative story. Both towards the plot and Chinese culture. (4/5)

6. Adrift in the South by Xiao Hai - An essay of the author's coming of age. At the age of 15, he left school, and along with many other finished students, he joined a teacher who escorted them to the city to a factory to become workers. The author is so excited the day he becomes a child labourer. He describes his hard life working at factories and drifting for the past 16 years. It is an immersive story as the author brings you into his life. (5/5)

7. Hai Shan Swimming Pool by Yang Zhihan - Li Wu remembers the time she wanted to learn to swim and while at the pool the first time a classmate she knows but is not friends with catches the attention of her mother, who asks her to teach Li Wu to swim. What follows is a wonderful year of friendship with a very melancholy ending. (5/5)

8. Tomorrow I'll Get Past It - A man has been working on a couple of novels in his head for twenty years. In the meantime, he has been guiding his niece in her writing skills and love of literature. It is a quirky story but mostly an insight into Chinese publishing. (4/5)

9. Goodbye, Bridge of the East - Two 36-year-olds are forced out on a date as they are now at the age where marriage is necessary according to their parents. The man has never had a repeat date before, and this time, it happens. The woman is an influencer on that Chinese social media site. It's another good look into Chinese culture and a good story. I loved these characters. (4/5)

10. The Leftie Sickle - The story of a village centres around the blacksmith's forge. The narrator is thinking back to several scenes that tie back to the time they made a sickle for a boy who had no right hand. I really enjoyed this one. (5/5)

11. Black Pig Hair, White Pig Hair by Yan Lianke - Genbao is 29, a gentle man who backs away from fights and has no career. Needless to say, his parents are disappointed, and his prospects for a wife are dim. He can't even get women looking for second marriages to look at him. Then, one day, someone in power is looking for someone to accept responsibility for their crime and do the jail time. This was a little hard to get into, the writing was stilted. It could be a translation thing, but then I got into the story, which I really enjoyed. (4/5)

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely collection of writing. My favs were Tomorrow I’ll get past it (Yu Hua) The Leftie Sickle (Mo Yan) Hai Shan Swimming Pool (Yang Zhihan) and Take me out to the ball game (Ban Yu).

Particularly this passage by Yang Zhihan:

Hai Shan Swimming Pool no longer exists, many things no longer exist, but there are still traces of us in the water. With no one else around, the sound of the water in the empty swimming pool has stilled; only the laughter of young girls can be heard, as they talk about dinosaurs and the universe, jealousy and pride, words that float in the water like fish bait, catching one beautiful promise after another. The float slowly drifts away, it isn’t needed anymore. That year, we were land and sea to each other. Mountains and rivers may shift, but they are always there.

[oceania · Rating 4 out of 5]

such a cool collection. i can’t stop recommending this to everybody i talk to, and i don’t even like short stories all that much. chinese literature has so many masters of disorientation, i love the way that linear time and place collapsed in on each other over and over again, and how memories are trapped in space and everybody is weightless and unmoored. some really cool poetry and photography too, although i’m always very split on english translations of chinese poetry…i feel like it just always loses the clarity of image that chinese can command. overall though i think i so rarely read something and come away feeling incredibly enriched and revived! some favourites of mine were speedwell, picun, haishan swimming pool, and the two huang fan poems.

[Jacob Shkrob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly quite an excellent collection of short stories. I am eager to read more Chinese authors in the future!

[Hazel P · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been hesitant to read contemporary Chinese literary fiction by mainland writers, as I prefer to avoid the sense of helplessness (or I feel helpless as a reader) that these works often convey in their portrayal of societal challenges. Additionally, their tendency to portray women through an objectifying lens diminishes my reading enjoyment. Instead, I find myself drawn to lighter fare, such as the Chinese television show where prominent writers gather on a resort island to discuss their creative process and share funny anecdotes. And I overall enjoyed this issue by Granta.

The anthology brings together an impressive array of voices that offer a panoramic view of Chinese literature, from Nobel laureate Mo Yan and acclaimed author Yu Hua to emerging talents from the workers' literature movement like Xiao Hai, and writers associated with the "Dongbei Renaissance" such as Shuang Xuetao and Ban Yu. This diverse selection provides readers with a nuanced understanding of contemporary Chinese literary landscapes.

My Least Favourite

However, not all pieces resonated equally. My least favorite is Zhang Yueran's "Speedwell." It stands out as the least interesting in its heavy-handed use of Western cultural signifiers. The characters inhabit a world of coffee shops, pizza, and Spanish literature references, while residing in rose-gardened Beijing homes and expounding on "anti-philistinism." I was wondering, why can't the characters have soy milk and buns? They can still talk about "being against philistinism" and read world literature. The story's reliance on Western consumption patterns as shorthand for political criticism (including the regime's censorship policy) reveals a simplistic dichotomy, and the characters also display little awareness of their privileged positions.

Gem

The workers' literature selections offer a refreshing perspective, though the anthology's editor has raised valid concerns about potential repetitiveness in this genre in an interview with Sinica podcast. I look forward to seeing how this literary movement evolves and whether it can maintain its distinctive voice in future published works.

My Favourites

The most engaging pieces come from the "Dongbei Renaissance" movement, whose writers craft narratives that are both humorous and authentically working-class in their perspective. It's worth noting that prominent editor Wu Qi contests the term "Dongbei Renaissance" itself in the interview piece (“The Rules of Game”), dismissing it as overly broad and optimistic—perhaps even a marketing construct.

The works from established authors are also surprisingly engaging, with Yu Hua, Yan Lianke, and Mo Yan each contributing compelling pieces that showcase their masterful storytelling abilities. I like Yu’s work most, followed by Yan and Mo’s contributions.

This collection succeeds in presenting a multifaceted view of contemporary Chinese literature, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in fiction by writers from mainland China.

🔖 For me, the most fascinating thing about their writing is how they accurately capture the lost but resigned emotional structure that pervades contemporary society, whether it be for an individual, a family, or a nation – the kind of weightlessness that one can only experience in a highly functioning social machine. There is a disease of weightlessness, especially serious, in today’s China. (Wu Qi, "The Rules of Game")

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting issue highlighting pieces by contemporary Chinese writers. Like all literary journals/short story collections I liked some of the stories better than others. I particularly enjoyed the Dongbei Renaissance stories, and learning about this art movement through the interview with bookseller Wu Qi. The standout pieces for me were as follows:

Adrift in the South by Xiao Hai: an extremely interesting nonfiction account of a teenager working in highly demanding manufacturing factories. While China has lifted millions of people out of poverty and workplace conditions are considered to be much improved in more recent years, this piece highlights the reality of migrant workers in China over the last few decades. Long hours, low pay, living far away from family, and minimal workers protections have been commonplace for China’s migrant lower class. A depiction of how communist/socialist countries are not always free from symptoms of capitalism

Hai Shan Swimming Pool by Yang Zhihan: a slice of life piece about childhood friendship at the swimming pool. I couldn’t help but wonder if there was an undercurrent of a sapphic crush in this story, the subtlety makes sense given the lack of acceptance of same-sex relationships in China

Tomorrow I’ll Get Past It by Yu Hua: A struggling writer and his successful author niece. A humorous story about the struggles of writing that transcends culture and nation

Goodbye, Bridge of the East by Wang Zhanhei: Dating is a struggle for everyone whether it’s swiping through frat boys and OF models on Hinge in the West or getting set up with wannabe influencers in the East. Engaging and quirky little story

Hunter by Shuang Xuetao: an aspiring actor succumbs further than expected into method acting after the chance of a lifetime slips away

The Civilian Level by Lie Jie and Zhang Jungang: My favorite photography collection in this issue depicting intimate and every day moments in this couple’s life that feel poignant and real

[Dan Henri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decided to try out a big boy "literary journals" and boy, am I underwhelmed. Probably not a huge fan of short stories to begin with, but this type of "literary fiction" as I think it's called is not my bag. So much apparant thought put into prose and style seemingly at the expense of everything else. Like, if you're not doing a Herman Melville and have a sentence that runs for 3 pages with 14 semicolons in it. I honestly doing care about how stylish your prose is. Wow no quotation marks, who cares.

It was interesting to read a bunch of mainland Chinese authors though, and I'm really being overly harsh because I'm not a fan of this type of writing, but some of the stories were pretty good. By far my favorite was Adrift in the South, a non fiction story about the author's childhood and young adulthood spent working in factories for 12 hours a day with one day off a month in the early 2000s. Totally crushing to be honest. It made me very upset that there's millions of people who wasted their whole youths during that time while basically being responsible for China being such a powerful country today, and it shits me that the he would be walking down like "proletariat avenue" on the way to be a child laborer for like a Foxcon contractor. Obviously president Xi, fire at will, but everyone who experienced this should get a house and retirement effective immediately on the party dime.

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this anthology of contemporary Chinese writing in translation. Granta's selection of short stories, poetry, photographic essays and non-fiction offers a wonderful window into the lives of ordinary Chinese citizens today. The interview with Wu Qi provides an informative summary of the state of 'long form' writing in China, whether literary or otherwise. I was particularly interested how similar in many ways the struggles of poor and marginalised Chinese workers to eke out a living are to those in Western societies. Also the desperate search of single young men to find a wife, any wife, through match-makers, was a recurrent and poignant theme in these writings. My one criticism is the often jarring Americanisms adopted by many of the translators in their attempt to make potentially alien expressions sound familiar to American ears. But of course it is American, not English, that Chinese translators learn in their interactions with the West. An incidental personal benefit to me in reading these stories, situated in widely different regions and cities in China, has been (with the aid of Google Maps) to educate myself in the geography of modern China. I highly recommend this anthology to anyone interested in contemporary China and its people.

[Chris]

I’m happy to have this “sampler” of literature from a region of the world whose authors I don’t frequently read.
Many of the stories are steeped in the idiosyncrasies of daily life and society in China; creating a gulf for a reader like me to stretch my comprehension, yes, I can imagine the “black” buses, swindling unwary travelers, as depicted in Xaio Hai’s “Adrift In The South” are a thing, a common thing, and that such unregulated transport is just one unregulated service in China, not only unregulated, but unable to be regulated in a country so vast.
I found the anthropomorphism of grasses in Jianan Qian’s “The Piranhas” and of books in Yu Hua’s “Tomorrow I’ll Get Past It” sophmoric, but both writers were able to move out of such simple construction.
I enjoyed the poetry, particularly “New Year’s By The Sea” by Huang Fan.
Also, the photography provided both a look at Chinese society and its directions in the art of photography.

[jz]

i think i enjoyed this issue... i did feel that granta tried to put together a collection that was diverse in time period, perspective, medium, background of creator, etc. but i came away from every single story feeling kind of weird and unmoored and saturnine. even the bittersweet nostalgia invoked by take me out to the ball game and hai shan swimming pool (two of my favorites) left a lump in my throat. is modern china now just all ennui/hopelessness/urban saudade? feels very paradoxical trying to square this with all the bullish takes on tech development coming out of twitter/etc. these days. (the obvious and depressing conclusion is that all that is being buoyed by profound misery at the foundational level. but i guess that's everywhere nowadays.)

like all the other reviews, 安利 "adrift in the south". one of the best essays i've read in 2025 (and i've read a lot!).

[Kaltmamsell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bis zum Schluss ein Highlight der Reihe: Ich bekam einen Einblick in die Vielfalt zeitgenössischer chinesischer Literatur und Fotografie, darunter eine Satire übers Verlagswesen und die Vorgaben der offiziellen Politik (Yu Hua, tr. Michael Berry, “Tomorrow I’ll Get Past It”), die Geschichte zweier Mädchen, die sich beim Schwimmen anfreunden (Yang Shihan, tr. Helen Wang, “Hai Shan Swimming Pool”), über die Dynamik einer Dorfgemeinschaft (Literaturnobelpreisträger Mo Yan, tr. Nicky Harman, “The Leftie Sickle”), die Geschichte eines erfolglosen Filmschauspielers (Shuang Xuetao, tr. Jeremy Tiang, “Hunter”), Interviews, Fotos, die der beamtete Fotograf Fenf Li neben den offiziellen Aufträgen machte. Empfehlung!

[karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

my first ever granta issue and quite satisfied with its content. howEVeR. the cover? every other issue has a nice, artistic front page. all this issue got is an all red cover with a yellow star, and i just wish we would stop using the chinese flag (that, to me, is synonym with the government and not the people) as a cover picture whenever something is china-related (the germany issue didn't get the same treatment). there is so much potential for artistic creation! i calmed down a bit after reading thomas meaney's preface but still. let the chinese people and artists shine without constantly hiding them behind their country's flag.

[angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

love love LOVED this !!!! tbh i really liked almost everything in this, but the dongbei renaissance stories were strongest imo. wu qi interview was fascinating, as was the intro that talked abt the history of chinese literature. the weakest two stories were yan lianke’s and mo yan’s, which was kinda surprising. yu hua is actually funny af????

faves: hai shan swimming pool, adrift in the south, picun, take me out to the ball game, speedwell, haohui liu’s oil town photos, li jie and zhang jungang’s photos

[Ray Quirolgico · Rating 4 out of 5]

An impressive collection of writing that includes essays, poems, memories, fiction, and photos. The introduction remarks about what an impossible task it is to gather together in one published volume a variety of works that are authentic and diverse, from such a wide-ranging population but in a tightly controlled country. But GRANTA did it again and presents here an intriguing landscape of time and space.

[欠生 · Rating 4 out of 5]

喜欢Thomas Meaney的Intro和里面每一篇非虚构/访谈，喜欢阎连科的《黑猪毛，白猪毛》、双雪涛的《猎人》、钱佳楠的“The Piranhas”、邹静之的“The Excitements of Spring“等等。很多篇的幽默感穿透了翻译的屏障
Hot take: if the mag already went to such lengths to include Uighur poets, why not go the extra mile to include those from other minority groups? I think I know why and it doesn’t sit well with me

[Victoria & David Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another good issue, and yet, I was left feeling the need for more context, more non fiction.
The interview with Wu Qi regarding the current state of the literary environment and 'Adrift in the south' by Xiao Hai about factory work as he experienced it were excellent. And the photo essay by Feng Li was a revelation.

[Joseph Crook · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is uneven but I really enjoyed it. I was shocked by the ennui, the cynicism, the alienation of so much of it. China feels like a very difficult place to be if you are in any way different. So much humanity and complexity in it. The short stories hit the hardest.

[Cécile · Rating 5 out of 5]

reminded me of home

[Johan Sanders · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mijn favorieten:
The piranhas van Jianan Qian
Hai Shan Swimming Pool van Yang Zhihan
Tomorrow I'll Get Past It van Yu Hua

[mimoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

bu cuo
some devastating, some very great photo essays and nonfic, enjoyed the swimming story

[Andrew Tattersall · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of short stories, poetry and photos from China showing the lives of the people in the country. The similarities and differences with people here in Cambodia were interesting.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably the best capsule of contemporary China I've seen in English. I won't say its great just because it's accurate, I didn't like the lack of focus in some work mirroring societal listlessness. That 4th wall break is not cute. 'Adrift in the South' by Xiao Hai is mesmerising, read that if nothing else on the Granta website.

[Vladimir Ghinculov · Rating 4 out of 5]

An unusually good issue of Granta. Dedicated to Chinese contemporary writing, the fiction part was qualitatively good. The non-fiction and poetry sections, not so much. I must direct you to the short story Speedwell by Zhang Yueran, an almost magical realist tale of loss centered on the theme of failure.