⇒ Download Gratis Boy in the Twilight Stories of the Hidden China Yu Hua Allan H Barr Books

Boy in the Twilight Stories of the Hidden China Yu Hua Allan H Barr Books

Download As PDF : Boy in the Twilight Stories of the Hidden China Yu Hua Allan H Barr Books

Boy in the Twilight Stories of the Hidden China Yu Hua Allan H Barr Books

I read Boy in the Twilight after reading Yu Hua's other more popular book Brothers.

Brothers, has a very complex story line, and has plot twists every 100ish pages. With Boy in the Twilight, I feel like I get whiplash every 30 pages with some new dramatic plot twist or melodramatic drawn out climax. Halfway through the book, all of the stories start to feel the same, and you can basically predict what type of "tragedy" Yu Hua is going to weave into the story to upset you.

When you are already pretty sure exactly what kinds of things he is going to write to rip you apart from characters that people inherently start to get attached to when they start reading, why would you keep reading after that?


Tags : Amazon.com: Boy in the Twilight: Stories of the Hidden China (9780307379368): Yu Hua, Allan H. Barr: Books,Yu Hua, Allan H. Barr,Boy in the Twilight: Stories of the Hidden China,Pantheon,0307379361,Literary,Short Stories (single author),China;Fiction.,Short stories.,CHINESE (LANGUAGE) CONTEMPORARY FICTION,China,Fiction,Fiction - General,Fiction Literary,Fiction Short Stories (single author),Fiction-Short Stories (single author),GENERAL,General Adult,Literary Collections Asian Chinese,Short stories,United States

Boy in the Twilight Stories of the Hidden China Yu Hua Allan H Barr Books Reviews

I've read 'Brothers', Yu Hua's satirical novel about China following the Cultural Revolution. I picked this collection from my Vine offer since I enjoyed the novel and was interested in reading these short stories. This collection was published in China in 1999 and the stories have appeared since in periodicals in China and the US, most recently in the New Yorker in 2014 ("Victory"). I was generally impressed with the strength of the stories, though a few were better than most and only a few were underwhelming.

'No Name of My Own' is a story about a simpleton who befriends a mongrel dog. It was one of the less impressive stories, and a tough story to lead with - though they generally get better from here.

'Boy in the Twilight' is a story about a boy who steals an apple and is put to public shame and brutality by the apple seller.

'Why There Was No Music' is a story about a couple of friends, one lends his friend some VHS tapes, unknowingly one is a home video that was never meant to be seen by the other.

'Victory' was one of the better stories in the collection (in my opinion), in it, a wife discovers letters proving her husband's infidelity and events proceed from there.

'Appendix' is another great story in this collection - it involves a doctor and his two son's - and the ill-fated results of telling an awe inspiring tale to the kids.

'Mid-Air Collision' was another stellar story, probably my second favorite of this collection. In it, a 'ladies man' is being targeted by a jealous husband. He gathers his friends to walk him home and intimidate the waiting husband, only to have the others realize it's the first time in awhile they've all been together.

'On the Bridge' was not a favorite, it involves a couple fearing pregnancy.

'Sweltering Summer' is a solid story about a guy who dates two women at the same time, both who pretend to not be interested in him.

'Timid as a Mouse' might be my favorite. It's about a timid man and a brief series of flashbacks to his past and how events in the past shaped his present personality. It is also a bit longer than the other stories.

'Their Son' is a story about a youth coming of age in modern China. I felt it was among the weaker stories.

'The Skipping and Stepping Game' is another story vying to be a favorite. In this very short piece, a family is viewed by an elderly gentleman. What Yu Hua does in this story with so few words is amazing!

'Why Do I Have to Get Married' is a cautionary tale of 'be careful what you wish for' or in this case it would be more fitting to say 'don't make up stories - they might come true!'

'Friends' is the last story, and a fitting finale to the collection.
This was in Oprahs magazine and I was excited to read it, but only finished it to see if it would make sense, but it didnt.
Yu Hua is magnificent.
Heart breaking, but-O so wonderfully written. I would read again and again.
Interesting short stories about lives and culture in modern China. Some stories are hard to conceive. May be the events are possible or plausible, having been to China several times. Still, I hope not......
The author's writing and the translation seem fine, but the stories are unremittingly bleak.
Horrible, I only finish it because it was for a class, I would never want to read anything from Yu Hua again. Is perturbing to read him.
I read Boy in the Twilight after reading Yu Hua's other more popular book Brothers.

Brothers, has a very complex story line, and has plot twists every 100ish pages. With Boy in the Twilight, I feel like I get whiplash every 30 pages with some new dramatic plot twist or melodramatic drawn out climax. Halfway through the book, all of the stories start to feel the same, and you can basically predict what type of "tragedy" Yu Hua is going to weave into the story to upset you.

When you are already pretty sure exactly what kinds of things he is going to write to rip you apart from characters that people inherently start to get attached to when they start reading, why would you keep reading after that?