Liao Yiwu

Excellent But Not As Advertised

This is the fourth Liao Yiwu book that I have read. It is well-written, like the others. Unfortunately, the book is "not as advertised."

I do not believe Liao Yiwu was at Tiananmen Square in 1989, but he took the massacre personally and wrote several poems and plays about it. This lead to his own arrest and four year imprisonment, resulting in his autobiographical "For a Song and a Hundred Songs."

Both the publisher and the author, in the prologue, claim that show more the book focuses on the "thugs" who participated in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests - "thugs" being the Chinese government's word for non-student protesters. The first part of the book, called "Beijing," deals with these stories, but it is only 130 of the book's 312 pages. These vignettes told in the form of interviews are wonderful, though. They are heart-wrenching in their sincerity. Using a friend to help him track down victims of the massacre, Liao Yiwu recorded their stories and transcribed them later.

The second half of the book, called "Sichuan," deals with the stories of student protesters and intellectuals, all of whom appear to be friends and colleagues of Liao Yiwu. They are interesting, but certainly not in the same vain as the other nine stories. They are more poetic and high-minded, less concerned with everyday reality. There is a long addendum to the book that is largely unrelated to the rest of it. It is a series of letters between Liao Yiwu and his friends in Germany. They are trying to help the intellectual dissident Liu Xiaobo out of China in his last days. It is heartfelt, but largely repetitive and out of place in this book, and takes several potshots at Ai Weiwei, another dissident artist. Lastly, the book includes a fifty-page appendix of names that is publically available from the Tiananmen Mothers group. Each name includes a brief paragraph about the circumstances of their deaths.

I just wish the book contained more interviews and less personal interjection. Nevertheless, it is worth reading because the Tiananmen Massacre needs to be remembered. show less

I read this as a buddy read with the amazing Kate and truly enjoyed both the book and the wide- ranging discissions it inspired.

This is an oral history of people living in the post-Cultural Revolution China. Obviously the government did not and does not allow this sort of discussion, so the interviews were held in a clandestine way, often inside prisons, and Liao Yiwu was himself imprisoned for his work getting this information out to the world. He now lives in Germany.

I lived in China show more around the time many of these interviews were conducted, and I was honored that so many people shared their stories with me and my now ex-partner (his Chinese was far superior to my own, so really they were trusting in him more than me, but I was lucky enough to ride shotgun.) The stories here are completely in keeping with what we heard, though they are even more brutal. This information is so important to all of us, to fully see the danger of strongman government, of deifying a leader and closing your eyes to his lies until it is too late, and also to pay respect to those who suffered, and to better understand China as it is today. Liao often shared his opinions in the interviews, telling people they were terrible or guilty, or that their actions or the actions of other were wrong, and that really bothered me. Still, I am so grateful for his immense personal sacrifice to bring these stories to the world, and amplify the voices of people who had so much taken from them. show less

I learned more about China from reading Liao Yiwu's The Corpse Walker and Other True Stories of Life in China than I'd previously learned in a lifetime.

The book comprises twenty-seven true life interviews with Chinese citizens from all walks of life and Liao Yiwu has been imprisoned for 4 years for writing the truth and recording oral history. In fact, he is legally unable to leave China to promote his book or attend international literary festivals.

His collection takes its name from an old show more practice in China of 'walking a corpse'. When a person died far from home, the family would hire a corpse walker to transport the corpse home if they could afford to.

The corpse was covered with a huge dark robe including a hood covering the face. The 'corpse walker' walked ahead giving verbal commands to the corpse whilst holding a white paper lantern and tossing fake money every now and again to 'buy their way into the other world'. It appeared to anyone passing them on the road that the corpse was walking, however the secret was that there was a second corpse walker underneath and the corpse was actually tied to his back. Fascinating!

The author interviewed many interesting people and it was from reading these interviews and personal accounts that I learned about the Cultural Revolution in China, the Great Leap Forward and the Great Chinese Famine in detail. I was also able to understand how each related to the other and put the political pieces together. I was incredibly shocked to learn of the millions of Chinese who lost their lives in the Chinese Famine in the early '60s (approx 20-40 million people!) and to read of the cannibalism going on; families in rural areas killing their daughters to feed their families. Just unthinkable!

It was only in reading their individual stories that I realised just how ignorant I had been about the real China. It also highlighted to me how effective the Chinese Government has been in keeping the West in the dark and how thankful I am to author Liao Yiwu for taking the risks he has in getting them to us in the West.

It wasn't all doom and gloom though. There were some uplifting and inspiring stories too, stories of incredible strength, forgiveness and spiritual endurance.

The Corpse Walker and Other True Stories of Life in China is an incredible book written by a fearless author who was imprisoned for his work and beliefs. I can't recommend it highly enough. show less

Wrenching Vignettes

Each ten to fifteen page chapter tells a vignette or a story from one person on the lower rung of society in China. There are twenty some chapters written in interview format (the author wrote each interview based on conversations during which he took notes). The people interviewed include criminals, beggars, and many people put out by the government. The author does not give much historical context, which is not necessarily needed because historic events (famine, show more political upheavals, etc) are explained through the interviews.

"The Corpse Walker" is very easy to read, even with the heart-wrenching stories. It goes quickly. I would love to read the other interviews that are available in the Chinese version. show less