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K: A Novel
Professor Francis Kauffman has unwittingly landed himself in prison where he’s faced with an insurmountable task: execute a fellow inmate. Charged with igniting a political insurrection amongst his students at a university in Beijing, Kauffman is sent to the notorious Kun Chong Prison, where his existence grows stranger by the hour as he struggles with the weight of his imprisonment and his incurable need to write about it in a place where art is forbidden, and the inmates must act as executioners. As cultures clash in his filthy, crowded cell, it soon becomes clear that he's destined for a labor camp…or worse. In this surreal and brutally honest literary thriller, Kauffman reflects on the turbulent family history that brought him to China, where he leads a solitary, expat life of soulless insurance jobs and all-night writing binges, only to wind up fighting a battle for his life inside the walls of Kun Chong.
318 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 5, 2020
Stunning! This story is stunning in every sense of the word!
This debut novel tells about a German-American English teacher in China who is imprisoned due to alleged contributing to the political dissidence of two students among other charges. It incorporates other history as the teacher, Francis Kaufman, has a Jewish father who escaped Nazi Germany. How these two histories are interwoven in a credible manner in this novel is just one aspect of this story's complexity.
Mr. Kaufman is the narrator of the story which goes back and forth in time between his present prison sentence in Kun Chong and his own family history. As the two converge near the end of the book, I found no telling what would happen. I kept reading compuulsively, but the topics are so savage that I found myself taking intermissions just to calm down. The characters are so real that they practically jump off of the pages.
Something that might be off-putting for other readers but I found fabulous were some English words, some Chinese words, and some acronyms with which I was not familiar. I enjoyed educating myself about these to make my reading experience of this book so much richer.
I've read quite a bit about China in the past, but it is a new experience to read something quite so contemporary...a novel which mentions Presidents Obama and Trump in an offhand way. I found this novel very frightening because I was getting a subliminal (or really maybe not so subtle) message that the power is not in the people...in any country.
"The moment you say that this man's life is worth more than than man's --you can justify anything."
I found myself stopping at frequent intervals to write down quotes from many of the characters. So many of their statements are worth noting and remembering.
Even though I found this book chilling, I think it is a must read. It is a wake-up call to people who allow their own governments too much power, whatever the jurisdiction.
I am ever so ready to read any other work by this brilliant novelist. I know he's a musician, but I would also love to encourage and support his career as an author!
This debut novel tells about a German-American English teacher in China who is imprisoned due to alleged contributing to the political dissidence of two students among other charges. It incorporates other history as the teacher, Francis Kaufman, has a Jewish father who escaped Nazi Germany. How these two histories are interwoven in a credible manner in this novel is just one aspect of this story's complexity.
Mr. Kaufman is the narrator of the story which goes back and forth in time between his present prison sentence in Kun Chong and his own family history. As the two converge near the end of the book, I found no telling what would happen. I kept reading compuulsively, but the topics are so savage that I found myself taking intermissions just to calm down. The characters are so real that they practically jump off of the pages.
Something that might be off-putting for other readers but I found fabulous were some English words, some Chinese words, and some acronyms with which I was not familiar. I enjoyed educating myself about these to make my reading experience of this book so much richer.
I've read quite a bit about China in the past, but it is a new experience to read something quite so contemporary...a novel which mentions Presidents Obama and Trump in an offhand way. I found this novel very frightening because I was getting a subliminal (or really maybe not so subtle) message that the power is not in the people...in any country.
"The moment you say that this man's life is worth more than than man's --you can justify anything."
I found myself stopping at frequent intervals to write down quotes from many of the characters. So many of their statements are worth noting and remembering.
Even though I found this book chilling, I think it is a must read. It is a wake-up call to people who allow their own governments too much power, whatever the jurisdiction.
I am ever so ready to read any other work by this brilliant novelist. I know he's a musician, but I would also love to encourage and support his career as an author!
January 15, 2020
Enjoyed this book from a debut author -- the setting inside of a Chinese prison is interesting as is how the writer handles the main character.
August 10, 2020
This is a thinking person’s novel—deeply philosophical and funny. The narrator has such an original voice, I read for his every piquant observation: "Time creeps and
the movement of the women lingers like the feel of the sea in your legs after getting off a boat." Gorgeous writing. The narrative alternates skillfully between backstory—Francis is a hapless writer teaching business English in China who gets himself accused of aiding dissidents—and the narrative present—the cell he shares with seven imprisoned men, one of whom the others have been assigned to kill. I promise you will never see the end coming. This is a big ideas book that asks us to consider the role of art under a totalitarian regime: subversive university students avoid social networking but use short poems that everyone can memorize; in his cell, Francis writes a novel every day, even when he has no paper. As the backstory spools out, the reader learns Francis is a Jewish American whose grandfather died in a concentration camp, which has made him keenly aware of just how apparatchiks turn evil into the banal. The dark turns of humor will surprise you and were for me, one of the novel’s great rewards. Francis interrogates himself to burn off any illusions he might have about heroism or art. No easy answers here. K is literary fiction of the highest order.
the movement of the women lingers like the feel of the sea in your legs after getting off a boat." Gorgeous writing. The narrative alternates skillfully between backstory—Francis is a hapless writer teaching business English in China who gets himself accused of aiding dissidents—and the narrative present—the cell he shares with seven imprisoned men, one of whom the others have been assigned to kill. I promise you will never see the end coming. This is a big ideas book that asks us to consider the role of art under a totalitarian regime: subversive university students avoid social networking but use short poems that everyone can memorize; in his cell, Francis writes a novel every day, even when he has no paper. As the backstory spools out, the reader learns Francis is a Jewish American whose grandfather died in a concentration camp, which has made him keenly aware of just how apparatchiks turn evil into the banal. The dark turns of humor will surprise you and were for me, one of the novel’s great rewards. Francis interrogates himself to burn off any illusions he might have about heroism or art. No easy answers here. K is literary fiction of the highest order.
January 10, 2021
When I read the description of K, I was intimidated--I didn't know enough of the topic, felt there would be brilliance that would be lost on me, and I wouldn't be able to engage in confident discourse with fellow readers. But I was inspired and compelled, and now, I'm grateful. O'Connell has a beautiful way of threading humanity through the inhumane, and the ordinary through an ugly extraordinary. He brings a distant and disturbing prison microcosm into view by putting someone I can relate to in its center.
For some reason, the scene in the chapter, Movie Nights, where Francis and his father come to emotional blows has stayed with me. I can easily see this being portrayed on stage, and to a captivated audience.
I found myself caring about Francis Kauffman, his honesty, selflessness and missteps, his innate and life-sustaining need to write, as well as what happens to the lives of those around him. From the gritty details inside a shared cell to unlocking complex truths between father and son, K is a rewarding read. Highly recommend.
For some reason, the scene in the chapter, Movie Nights, where Francis and his father come to emotional blows has stayed with me. I can easily see this being portrayed on stage, and to a captivated audience.
I found myself caring about Francis Kauffman, his honesty, selflessness and missteps, his innate and life-sustaining need to write, as well as what happens to the lives of those around him. From the gritty details inside a shared cell to unlocking complex truths between father and son, K is a rewarding read. Highly recommend.
July 24, 2025
When this story opens, Francis Kaufmann, our narrator, is in Kun Chong prison in China, having crossed one of the indeterminate and ever-shifting political lines that exist in Chinese politics. Early in the story, we learn that one of his cellmates has been sentenced to death, and the rest of the prisoners in the cell have been ordered to carry out the sentence. It soon becomes clear that none of them wants to be the one that does the deed, and so the Xu Xuo, the condemned man, remains alive and imprisoned with them.
The story of their imprisonment is woven together with Kaufmann's own back story. We learn of his father's origins as a child of a mother who escaped the Holocaust and a father who didn't. We learn of Kaufmann's desire to be a writer and his futile efforts to escape his father's desires that he work in the family's insurance business. This ultimately brings Kaufmann to China, where he finally escapes the world of insurance and finance and becomes a professor, teaching English at a Beijing university. And it is here that he meets his undoing, encouraging students to think critically and to challenge what the government tells them. Without quite realizing what he has done, he has become a threat to the status quo and is arrested.
There is little in this novel that is cheerful. The environments are bleak, and Kaufmann is hardly a paragon of virtue. And yet, I found this story strangely compelling any way. Even when Kaufmann has given up on himself, I wanted him to survive. I think it is a testament to the quality of the writing here that I found myself rooting for this deeply flawed person, who is in prison through his own fault, and who should have been able to avoid that predicament with even a little more effort. But his portrayal here is entirely human and therefore thoroughly relatable. So, this may not be my favorite book I've read recently, but it was well written, and I was engaged enough to want to see how it ended.
The story of their imprisonment is woven together with Kaufmann's own back story. We learn of his father's origins as a child of a mother who escaped the Holocaust and a father who didn't. We learn of Kaufmann's desire to be a writer and his futile efforts to escape his father's desires that he work in the family's insurance business. This ultimately brings Kaufmann to China, where he finally escapes the world of insurance and finance and becomes a professor, teaching English at a Beijing university. And it is here that he meets his undoing, encouraging students to think critically and to challenge what the government tells them. Without quite realizing what he has done, he has become a threat to the status quo and is arrested.
There is little in this novel that is cheerful. The environments are bleak, and Kaufmann is hardly a paragon of virtue. And yet, I found this story strangely compelling any way. Even when Kaufmann has given up on himself, I wanted him to survive. I think it is a testament to the quality of the writing here that I found myself rooting for this deeply flawed person, who is in prison through his own fault, and who should have been able to avoid that predicament with even a little more effort. But his portrayal here is entirely human and therefore thoroughly relatable. So, this may not be my favorite book I've read recently, but it was well written, and I was engaged enough to want to see how it ended.
February 29, 2020
Ted O'Connell
I had an advance reader copy of this book after meeting the author at the PNW Booksellers Assoc. in Portland. I finished it a few months ago and I'm still thinking about it. The writing is rich and dense and the scenes have stayed with me. This book is a bit of a thriller though-- I read it fast because I wanted to see what happened. I'm looking forward to reading it a second time to savor the language and the storytelling.
I had an advance reader copy of this book after meeting the author at the PNW Booksellers Assoc. in Portland. I finished it a few months ago and I'm still thinking about it. The writing is rich and dense and the scenes have stayed with me. This book is a bit of a thriller though-- I read it fast because I wanted to see what happened. I'm looking forward to reading it a second time to savor the language and the storytelling.
April 22, 2020
This novel offers a gripping, nuanced exploration of how imprisonment tests a writer–mentally, physically, and morally. Just as compelling is how the novel conveys the writer’s need for self-expression, which never diminishes, even under the most trying circumstances. I was especially taken with scenes that show how stories–and storytelling–have the power to connect us: a welcome reminder in these troubling times.
For my full review, see: https://smallpresspicks.com/k-a-novel/.
For my full review, see: https://smallpresspicks.com/k-a-novel/.
May 22, 2022
The dizzying switches this novel put me through! I never expected what happened on p. 191 (Thankfully, the whole tragedy is laid out in four pages -- O'Connell is a really good writer. I can imagine someone else stretching it out to 20 awful pages)
On p. 195, the story gets really sweet. I'm speechless. The narrator's thinking about that time he fell in love on a Beijing bus. The pages spent describing how the narrator's lover taught him how to conduct a courtship via cell. And because of this, he stays longer in China. And longer. And longer. And can't seem to get himself to leave, even when he is in danger.
And so the narrator ends up in Kun Chong Prison. The only thing left to him is his burning desire to write, but every time he looks like he is writing, a guard pokes him with a bamboo goad. "The task of keeping me from writing must be an administrative priority." (p. 206) This is a writer's worst nightmare, so of course I am full of empathy for Professor K. Even when they think he's just DAYDREAMING, he gets a poke with the bamboo goad. They can't allow him to infect others because writing is "like venereal disease." Professor K, who has many good thoughts that deserve to be written down, ruminates: "This is what ribs are for, to protect our lungs from primitive armies."
Let me tell ya, I started writing fan fiction with passion, while reading this book. I mean, I've always written fan fiction, but now I did it WITH PASSION. Because if I never get another book published, at least people will read my fan fiction.
So thanks, Ted O'Connell!
On p. 195, the story gets really sweet. I'm speechless. The narrator's thinking about that time he fell in love on a Beijing bus. The pages spent describing how the narrator's lover taught him how to conduct a courtship via cell. And because of this, he stays longer in China. And longer. And longer. And can't seem to get himself to leave, even when he is in danger.
And so the narrator ends up in Kun Chong Prison. The only thing left to him is his burning desire to write, but every time he looks like he is writing, a guard pokes him with a bamboo goad. "The task of keeping me from writing must be an administrative priority." (p. 206) This is a writer's worst nightmare, so of course I am full of empathy for Professor K. Even when they think he's just DAYDREAMING, he gets a poke with the bamboo goad. They can't allow him to infect others because writing is "like venereal disease." Professor K, who has many good thoughts that deserve to be written down, ruminates: "This is what ribs are for, to protect our lungs from primitive armies."
Let me tell ya, I started writing fan fiction with passion, while reading this book. I mean, I've always written fan fiction, but now I did it WITH PASSION. Because if I never get another book published, at least people will read my fan fiction.
So thanks, Ted O'Connell!
September 21, 2022
Made a Goodreads password just so that I could say that K is a good book and you should read it. No conflicts of interest, just facts. Free my man Brother Gao he did nothing wrong please free this man I am begging you!!!! Also, I was gay for Kuku when I was like sixteen, and I have zero clue why, he doesn't have the looks OR the good personality. Lonely, quarantined sixteen-year-olds are weird I guess. This book is sad. Maybe that is a spoiler? I don't know, you tell me. If this was a movie, I would cast Cillian Murphy as Kaufmann except for the fact that I just looked it up and Cillian Murphy is 46 which is a bit older than Kaufmann. However, Mr. Francis Kaufmann might that old, I'll have to ask my dad I MEAN THE AUTHOR OF K: A NOVEL WHO I HAVE NEVER MET BEFORE IN MY LIFE.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews