Golden Age

Some of the funniest writing on sex I have encountered ... Through a colourful cast of characters the writer satirises a society in which the Cultural Revolution continued to shape behaviour for decades -- Ankita Chakraborty * Observer *
An edgy, insider's take on China ... a satire of the Cultural Revolution by the most popular modern author in China -- David Mills * The Sunday Times *
Both subversive and hilarious ... so enjoyable -- Chris Allnutt * Financial Times *
Is this Mao-era China's most hilarious black comedy? Wang Xiaobo's Golden Age sees its protagonist, like its author, sent for 're-education' - and a very funny, farcical sexual awakening... branded "the Chinese Kafka"... full of hilarity. There are wonderful observations about sex under public scrutiny ... I cannot extol Wang's penetrating prose enough -- Xiaolu Guo * The Telegraph *
Wang Xiaobo's 1990s knockabout satire is a revelation. His tale of China's Cultural Revolution is no sombre lesson, but an antic and anarchic extravaganza -- John Self * Independent *
An ironist, in the vein of Kurt Vonnegut, with a piercing eye for the intrusion of politics into private life… Long after his death, of a heart attack, at the age of forty-four, Wang’s views still circulate among fans like a secret handshake -- Evan Osnos * New Yorker *
Golden Age (a title oozing irony) is an ultra-modern blast of thrillingly wrong-footing licentiousness. Determined to smash taboos, it revels in the anti-authoritarian power of lust -- Anthony Cummins * Daily Mail *
One of China's modern masterpieces ... a political satire fuelled by sex, love and humour -- Alex Clark * BBC Open Book *

Wang Xiaobo is a truly unique writer, and there are very few writers like him. He had a remarkable ability to blend illusion with reality, distorting our understanding and infusing our feelings into the narrative of his language. This blending is so absurd, so real and palpable. Perhaps only a select few are capable of expressing their life experiences, imagination, and sexuality in relation to a vast and omnipresent political environment as Wang Xiaobo did.

What made Wang Xiaobo's writing so successful was his ability to use the most commonplace language to express the most heartfelt emotions in his inner world, and the most unspeakable real. When we encounter this kind of real while reading, we are left speechless; when "real" reaches a certain level, it all feels so unfamiliar and strange to us. It is precisely when this feeling of unfamiliarity emerges that the power of real reveals itself in Wang Xiaobo's words

* Ai Weiwei *
In this excellent translation by Yan Yan, Golden Age demonstrates that Wang Xiaobo is one of the most original writers in post-Mao China. At once hilarious and charged with serious political discourse, Golden Age is a tour de force. It is as playful as Animal Farm by Orwell and as complex as Master and Margarita by Bulgakov. Anyone who is interested in modern China should read this book -- Xiaolu Guo