Crazy (20th Anniversary New Edition)

The Crazed

Suddenly, he became a crazy man.
This is the most stunning masterpiece by Ha Jin, winner of the US National Book Award.

This novel is both a beginning and a farewell.
It marks my break with China. —Ha Jin

In 1989, Wan Jian was a graduate student at Shanning University in northern China. One day, his advisor, Professor Yang Shenmin, suffered a sudden stroke. Engaged to Professor Yang's daughter, Meimei, Wan Jian felt obligated to take on the responsibility of caring for her. However, while hospitalized for treatment, Professor Yang's behavior became increasingly bizarre. He would occasionally recite poetry and sing revolutionary songs, loudly pleading for mercy to invisible figures, and protesting against injustice at the university. Were these the ravings of a mental breakdown, or were they intertwined with a hidden truth?

This book focuses on the June 4th Tiananmen Square Incident, a turning point in Ha Jin's life. Written entirely in the first person, through the unvarnished gaze of the protagonist, Wan Jian, the book depicts the anguish of being surrounded and strangled by collective madness, and the profound psychological damage it inflicts. In his preface, Ha Jin admits that the chapter on Tiananmen Square was the most difficult to write, and he considers it a moral responsibility as a writer. This book remains the most influential account of the June 4th Incident, and is hailed as Ha Jin's most powerful, captivating, and extraordinary work.

"I want to write a novel featuring all these fascists. I want to nail them to history's pillar of shame."

The book that drives the CCP crazy the most.
Look directly at the suffocating Chinese Communist society and the endless compromises and deceptions to which intellectuals are subjected.

From blind loyalty to one's country to the brutality of the bloody crackdown in Tiananmen Square, Ha Jin's Wan Jian, like the protagonist in Kafka's novel, becomes increasingly frustrated with his efforts. Beginning with individual madness and ending in collective madness, "Madness" offers a powerful critique and testimony of Lu Xun's four thousand years of cannibalism in China, and the Communist Party's brutal, unjust, and murderous actions in the second half of the 20th century to maintain its rule.

What a lunatic! He makes me want to laugh and cry at the same time.
My eyes are blurred with tears.

"Ever since I boarded the train back home, I've been tormented by a terrifying vision. I see China as an ugly old woman, decrepit and mad, devouring her own children to sustain herself. Her greed is insatiable; she's already devoured countless lives, is gorging on new flesh now, and will undoubtedly continue to do so in the future. I can't shake this terrifying vision, and all day I keep telling myself, 'China is a bitch who eats her own cubs!' How can I not be horrified, my heart pounding! The commotion of two nights ago still clamors in my ears, and I'm afraid I'm going mad."

"The Tiananmen Incident not only woke us up, but also severed our contract with the state.
On a deeper level, 'Crazy' is about this national trauma and the rebellion of an entire generation."
—Ha Jin, Preface to the New Edition

New Traditional Chinese edition commemorating the 20th anniversary. Translated by renowned Hong Kong poet Wong Chan-yin.
Specially included new edition author's preface

International acclaim

Ha Jin transforms ordinary life into something golden...unforgettable...full of pain...a book that deserves to be remembered. - The Washington Post

Ha Jin's empathy for his characters is matched only by his reluctance to allow them even a moment to breathe. Reading his works is like falling in love: you feel anxiety, a deep sense of self-awareness, and a keen sense of the world's unhappiness—but somehow, this becomes a kind of pleasure... It's like encountering the best realists, Ha Jin imbues the simplest sentences with the greatest emotional power. - The New Yorker

A masterpiece of profound wisdom. "Crazy" is sharp and critical, yet blends in with Ha Jin's unadorned prose style, making it a truly remarkable addition to the rich oeuvre of this great author. — San Francisco Chronicle

A literary masterpiece in the highest tradition of Chekhov and Kawabata Yasunari, full of heartbreaking purity. —Houston Chronicle

2024-01-30

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