Mo Yan's cordial relationship with the Chinese government made his Nobel win a controversial one but it's not clear to me why books should be judged by their author's politics. I took the book on its own terms, without trying to discern the nature of the author's views, and found the book to be full of humility and humor and sadness, well worth reading. ( )

Het in sobere bewoordingen vertelde verhaal van een eenvoudige, van school gestuurde boerenjongen die, door het schrijven van de korte roman 'Het rode korenveld', zich aan zijn milieu ontworstelde en een literaire beroemdheid werd. ( )

Mo Yan (1955-) is an accomplished and prolific novelist, who was described as "one of the most famous, oft-banned and widely pirated of all Chinese writers" in a recent TIME Magazine article. "Change" was written as part of the series "What Was Communism?", edited by Tariq Ali and published by Seagull Books, which explores the practice, successes and failures of 20th century communism.

"Change" is a memoir that reads like a novella, which describes Mo Yan's experiences as a child in Shangdong province and young adult during the Cultural Revolution and its aftermath. Although he liked school he was an indifferent student, and was soon kicked out of school, wrongly accused of being a troublemaker. He eventually joined the People's Liberation Army, a difficult accomplishment that brought pride and elevated status to his family. There he realized that he most wanted to become a writer, and used his time off duty to hone his writing skills, which he continued after his return to civilian life.

"Change" is most effective when it describes life in a small village during the Cultural Revolution, and the stultifying effects that communism had on the lives of civilians. I found it to be a slight and mildly interesting book, but there are far better books about communist China during this period, so I'll only guardedly recommend it. ( )