This anthology gathers stories from established and emerging writers in China and is projected to be the first in a series of anthologies, modeled on successful Best of . . . anthologies in the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, and elsewhere.

Authors and stories: Bi Feiyu, "Sleeping" • Chen Jie, "When Are You Moving Out?" • Fan Xiaoqing, "Where Did I Lose You" • Han Shaogong, "Anger" • He Yuru, "Three Cleaners" • Huang Fan, "Jin Guo's Compass" • Li Han, "Late Stage" • Su Tong, "The Most Desolate Zoo in the World" • Tie Ning, "Irina's Hat" • Tsering Norbu, "Amirika" • Aang Baozhong,"The Ex-Husband" • Wang Shou, "How the Salesman Disappeared," • Xiao Su, "Our Privacy" • Xu Yigua, "Colored Starling" • Zhu Shanpo, "The Bird Vanishes."

The texts range from law and order in Tibet ("Amirika") to surrealism on the Vietnamese border ("The Bird Vanishes"), from Chinese tourism in Russia ("Irina's Hat") to the private lives of migrant populations ("Our Privacy"). In its range and depth, this anthology gives a Chinese literary self-portrait in dramatic times.

Bi Feiyu (two-time winner of the Lu Xun Literary Prize), Su Tong (winner of the Man Asian Literary Prize), Han Shaogong (winner of the Newman Prize of Chinese Literature), and Tie Ning (chairman of the China Writers' Association) are well-known abroad, but the other nine authors are here published in English translation for the first time.

Published in cooperation with the Chinese Writers' Association