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Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress: A Novel (Paperback)

by Dai Sijie (Author)

4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (148 customer reviews)

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Product Details

Paperback: 184 pages
Publisher: Anchor; Reprint edition (Oct 29 2002)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385722206
ISBN-13: 978-0385722209
Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 13 x 1.5 cm
Shipping Weight: 227 g

Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (148 customer reviews)

Amazon.ca Sales Rank: #9,436 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

The Cultural Revolution of Chairman Mao Zedong altered Chinese history in the 1960s and '70s, forcibly sending hundreds of thousands of Chinese intellectuals to peasant villages for "re-education." This moving, often wrenching short novel by a writer who was himself re-educated in the '70s tells how two young men weather years of banishment, emphasizing the power of literature to free the mind. Sijie's unnamed 17-year-old protagonist and his best friend, Luo, are bourgeois doctors' sons, and so condemned to serve four years in a remote mountain village, carrying pails of excrement daily up a hill. Only their ingenuity helps them to survive. The two friends are good at storytelling, and the village headman commands them to put on "oral cinema shows" for the villagers, reciting the plots and dialogue of movies. When another city boy leaves the mountains, the friends steal a suitcase full of forbidden books he has been hiding, knowing he will be afraid to call the authorities. Enchanted by the prose of a host of European writers, they dare to tell the story of The Count of Monte Cristo to the village tailor and to read Balzac to his shy and beautiful young daughter. Luo, who adores the Little Seamstress, dreams of transforming her from a simple country girl into a sophisticated lover with his foreign tales. He succeeds beyond his expectations, but the result is not what he might have hoped for, and leads to an unexpected, droll and poignant conclusion. The warmth and humor of Sijie's prose and the clarity of Rilke's translation distinguish this slim first novel, a wonderfully human tale. (Sept. 17)Forecast: Sijie's debut was a best-seller and prize winner in France in 2000, and rights have been sold in 19 countries; it is also scheduled to be made into a film. Its charm translates admirably strong sales can be expected on this side of the Atlantic.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

This deceptively small novel has the power to bring down governments. In Mao's China, the Cultural Revolution rages, and two friends caught in the flames find themselves shuttled off to the remote countryside for reeducation. The stolid narrator occasionally comforts himself by playing the violin, and both he and more outgoing friend Luo find that they have a talent for entertaining others with their re-creations of films they have seen. A little light comes their way when they meet the stunning daughter of the tailor in the town nearby, with whom Luo launches an affair. But the real coup is discovering a cache of forbidden Western literature including, of course, Balzac that forces open their world like a thousand flowers blooming. The literature proves their undoing, however, finally losing them the one thing that has sustained them. Dai Sijie, who was himself reeducated in early 1970s China before fleeing to France, wonderfully communicates the awesome power of literature of which his novel is proof. Highly recommended. Barbara Hoffert, "Library Journal"
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Customer Reviews

148 Reviews

5 star:		(79)
4 star:		(46)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(0)

Average Customer Review

4.3 out of 5 stars (148 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, Jul 30 2008

By	Pauline - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

"Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress" by Dai Sijie is a wonderful journey into China during the time of the infamous Cultural Revolution. The story is about two teens that have been sent to the country side for re-education. Both Luo and the unnamed narrator of the book are children from educated families, Luo's dad is a dentist who even worked on Mao Zedong's teeth and the narrator's father was a lung specialist and his mother was a consultant in parasitic diseases. Since both boys had educated parents they were sent to be re-educated.

The journey of re-education is harsh and the villagers are untrusting of all the items the two boys bring to the village. They are allowed to keep a rooster alarm clock and a violin. The boys are sent to watch movies in a nearby town with the expectation of when they return that they would act out the movie in its entirety for the whole village.

The book is about the power of story telling and mostly about the power of the written word.

The boys meet the seamstress' daughter and both fall in love with her. Luo has a relationship with her and decides she needs to be educated to better suit him. The two boys read to her western literature and her eyes are opened to many possibilities.

The two boys and their cache of forbidden Western literature including, of course, Balzac opens their eyes to a new world. The literature proves to be a double edged sword, however, for the boys lose the one thing that was making their life bearable.

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3.0 out of 5 stars P-U, Oct 24 2007

By	Harriet (London, England) - See all my reviews

I see this book is coupled with KITE RUNNER and the only reason I can think of for this is that it's exotic in content and involves two young men. Other than that the similarities end.

First of all, I should admit that I bought this book for its cover---something I don't ordinarily do, but the image was so striking that I had to read this. Boy, was I disappointed. BTW, the image of the shoes has absolutely NOTHING to do with the story--a real let-down.

While the look into communist China was interesting, the plot, if any, was thin and without drama. At the first of the story there is a bit of movement, but that quickly dies down. Also, some graphic parts I could have done without.

As far as the overall publication of the work, I was amazed to find typos and grammatical erros in a book that has been so highly touted and popular.

Sorry, but this "small" story just didn't do it for me. I'm giving it three stars because I just don't have the heart to give less. Even a bad book deserves something as none of them are easy to write.

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4.0 out of 5 stars A small book, but a deeply moving one, Jul 4 2007

By	Mary Ellen (St. Catharines, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

The power of books to transform the unspeakable into the sublime. Why roses can grow on a garbage heap. How storytelling helped two young men survive Chairman Mao's re-education programme. Lyrical

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Simple story--well told
Basically this is the story of China and the struggles that several people go through. I was reminded at times of "The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Read more

Published on Sep 22 2006 by D. Kauffman

4.0 out of 5 stars A well crafted novel with an ironic twist!
Aside from portraying a vivid image of China during the Mao years, this novel is also a very well crafted satire (in the same league as one of my favourite novelists -Somerset... Read more

Published on Mar 6 2005 by Andrea

3.0 out of 5 stars Okay book
Recently I've been lucky with my bestseller or recommended picks, having read Martel's LIFE OF PI and McCrae's CHILDREN'S CORNER. Read more

Published on Feb 16 2005 by ThomsEBynum

4.0 out of 5 stars Poetic
This translation of Dai Sijie's novel can be poetic at times but, as is common with translated works, it can leave the reader questioning the cultural context of some passages or... Read more

Published on Jul 14 2004 by T. Davis