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De Vette Jaren (2011)

by Chan Koonchung(Favorite Author)

3.19 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

9056723723 (ISBN13: 978905672372)

languge

English

genre

Science Fiction

publisher

Signatuur

review 1: Speculative fiction from mainland China! Or rather, a mystery set in a speculative fiction backdrop dressed up as a detailed critique of modern China. Or possibly vice versa. Anyway, the basics are this: in the near future, a global economic crisis even bigger than the 2008 meltdown has enabled China to supplant the US as the major economic power in the world, and China has become the happiness place on Earth. But a small group of people are not happy at all because they remember the events of the month that led to China’s ascendancy – a month that no one else seems to remember, and they’re determined to find out why. The novel took some effort to get into (I almost gave up on it early on) due to a slow and seemingly unfocused start. Also, Chan’s writing style tend... mores to wander into sociopolitical-analysis mode in a way that keeps the prose from flowing. Admittedly it often reads less like a novel and more like a college lecture on Chinese history, economic theory and political science. But give it enough time and it starts to get interesting (if those things interest you – and they do interest me, since I live next door to mainland China). So it’s not for everyone, particularly people whose current worldview on China is ideologically set in stone. As a mystery story, it's okay but a little weak. But as a speculative thought experiment on how China could in fact become the biggest economic superpower in the world, it’s jolly convincing, and closer to reality than you might think.
review 2: This is an important book with a conceit based very firmly in current political and financial realities. It examines, in detail, China's complex relationships with the Americas and the Eurozone through a story about four ordinary people trying to find a lost month. Two years ago, over the course of a month, something happened in China. Today everybody is content and happy with life as China hits full stride in it's new Age Of Ascendancy. America is in decline and the Chinese Century has begun. But what happened during that month and why doesn't anyone remember it? The novel is extremely well translated, insightful, intelligent, at turns very warm and well worth your time. HIGHLY recommended for folks with an eye for diplomatic maneuvering and economic imperialism. Not recommended for those not interested in geopolitics or macro economics. less

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