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Review of In Absurdia, by Glenn Whalan

September 7, 2020

In Absurdia, by Glenn Whalan, is a novel; sort of. In Absurdia, by Glenn Whalan, is an experimental-fiction novel; sort of. And this is a review of In Absurdia, by Glenn Whalan; (wait for it) sort of.

Quite honestly, this must be among the most unorthodox reviews I’ve ever had to write, not because I feel particularly ambivalent about the book I decided to review, but because I feel speechless – as in, literally speechless; I have so few things to talk about.

This, as we will see, contains hints both for the book and against it. However, even that is not as clear-cut as I’d like to make it sound. Concept such as “book”, “for”, or “against” are not something that seems to be in accord with what In Absurdia is all about.

in absurdia
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Review of Life, by Lu Yao

July 24, 2020

Life, by Lu Yao, is a Chinese novel written – and situated – in the early 1980s. A lot has happened since in China (and globally), though much of the story revolves around timeless issues.

What does it mean to love someone of a different social status? How does one balance between responsibility and personal desire? Should one submit to their fate – here defined not as some ghostly force but as what society prescribed – or not?

Life, by Lu Yao, poses such questions. The problem is that not only does it actually attempt to answer them – there are no real answers to such questions – but that it does so in a narratively naive, uninspiring manner.

review of Life, by Lu Yao
Life, by Lu Yao, basically revolves around matters of “fate” or, in any case, what one construes as such
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Review of A Perfect Crime

March 28, 2018

I haven’t read much Chinese literature, so finding a library copy of A Yi’s A Perfect Crime seemed like a good choice for some casual afternoon reading. I discovered that A Yi worked as a police officer for a few years before becoming a writer, so a crime novel by a former police officer came off as promising. The description left little to imagination: a Chinese teenager decides to kill someone, and he murders a schoolmate of his. Subsequently, he leaves town.

a perfect crime
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