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The world isn't flat, installment #736
Wolf Totem, by Jiang Rong, is the most widely read book in China since Chairman Mao's Little Red Book. In the United States it's been out since March 27 and still it has only one Amazon review and a negative one at that. So far I find it compelling and I am enjoying its panpsychic vulgarities. It's also a good guide to how the Chinese think about their foreign policy.
Posted by Tyler Cowen on April 14, 2008 at 07:04 PM in Books | Permalink
Comments
Don't know what's up at Amazon, but it had a multi-copy display, front and center as you walk in the door at the local Barnes and Noble. (Personally, I'm enough of a cheapskate to wait for the paperback.)
Posted by: dzot at Apr 14, 2008 9:45:03 PM
I wouldn't call that comment negative. It raised criticisms, but also had a lot of positive things to say about the work.
Posted by: doctorpat at Apr 14, 2008 10:18:37 PM
The Seattle Public Library only has 19 active holds on 6 copies... That's pretty low demand.
Posted by: thesultan at Apr 15, 2008 1:51:23 AM
"most widely read book" ... "Little Red Book" ... pun intended?
Posted by: Anon at Apr 15, 2008 2:30:56 AM
In a related curiosity, I was once unable to find Mao's Little Red Book at any Harvard Square bookstores or even in its library. Maybe I wasn't looking hard enough.
Posted by: Dan at Apr 15, 2008 3:09:12 AM
Dan- Clearly you didn't make your way into Revolution Books. There are also multiple copies in the Harvard-Yenching Library.
Posted by: wugong at Apr 15, 2008 8:32:21 AM
By the way, are there any books that were originally written in Chinese for a Chinese audience that have been big sellers in the US in translation? I'm sure there was a surge in interest in Gao Xingjian, but I don't think "Soul Mountain" ever sold particularly well, even with the Nobel imprimatur.
Posted by: wugong at Apr 15, 2008 8:37:29 AM
