Red Dust

£8.99

Red Dust tells the fascinating account of Ma Jian's three-year journey around China. Following his 30th birthday he becomes desperate to escape the confines of his life in Beijing. Facing surveillance from his work unit and the police as a result of Deng Xiaoping's clamping down on 'Spiritual Pollution' he chooses to uproot himself from his bohemian lifestyle, estranged wife and child, and flee for the Chinese hinterlands in search of himself.

Setting off for the westernmost border of China he immerses himself in the remotest parts of country, travelling with little or no money and surviving by doing odd jobs and publishing poetry and short stories through his remaining network of literary friends.

He leads us through an array of amazing adventures, from finding himself lost in the desert with no water for three days to scaling a huge cliff in a remarkably gung-ho style. This story speaks volumes about this fascinating land. Beautifully translated from Chinese by Flora Drew the story he tells is written from both an insider and outsider's perspective providing a complete portrait of what life is like for ordinary Chinese people. Told with an understated and elegant style, this is a book that allows you to experience the wonders of China for yourself, seen through the eyes of a native and told in a way that no foreign writer could match.

Winner of the 2002 Thomas Cook Travel Book Award