Paper Bayonet
Tags
Summary
Editor's review
Xu Dahui's writing style is steady and delicate, skilled at creating vivid character groups within a historical framework. From bank cadres and underground workers to ordinary citizens and speculative merchants, characters of all kinds rise and fall in the tide of currency change, and their choices, perseverance, and sacrifices together weave a vivid social panorama of a turbulent era. The author's depiction of Northeast regional scenery and customs is also particularly outstanding, giving the whole work a solid texture of life and a sense of historical immediacy.
For readers, the value of "Paper Bayonet" lies in the window it provides onto the complexity of history. It tells us that the victory of the revolution depended not only on charges at the front but also on the silent dedication and life-and-death struggles of countless unsung heroes on the rear economic front. This book is suitable for readers interested in history but hoping to go beyond simple binary narratives and willing to explore multidimensional motivations in the historical process. It requires some patience to follow the unfolding plot, but what follows is a more three-dimensional and profound understanding of those extraordinary years.
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers interested in the history of the Liberation War, especially the history of the Northeast, who wish to understand struggles beyond the military level.
- Readers who like the perspectives of social history and economic history and care about the fate and choices of ordinary people in major historical events.
- Readers who appreciate realist novels with solid writing, rich details, and three-dimensional character portrayal.
- Readers with some interest in the history of currency and finance who want to learn about the Party's early financial work practices.
Not a good fit for
- Entertainment-oriented readers seeking fast pace, strong plot conflicts, and lots of action scenes.
- Readers completely unfamiliar with the modern and contemporary historical background who are unwilling to spend effort understanding the relevant context while reading.
Reading tips
- Before reading, a brief understanding of the political and economic situation in the Northeast from 1945 to 1948 will help you enter the story's context more quickly.
- Pay attention to how characters from different social strata respond to currency changes; this is an important clue to understanding the novel's social depth.
- The book can be read in comparison with works on military affairs, land reform, and other subjects from the same period to gain a more complete understanding of history.
About the publisher
Hunan People's Publishing House is a publisher known for its strengths in the humanities and social sciences and in translated classic works. Its catalog covers biography, Eastern philosophy, philosophical reading, social fiction, classics, and essays, with a particular focus on introducing major foreign works of thought and literary classics. Representative titles include Stefan Zweig's Decisive Moments in History and The Struggle with the Daemon: Hölderlin, Kleist, Nietzsche, Albert Camus's The Myth of Sisyphus, Bertrand Russell's The Conquest of Happiness, and Seneca's On the Shortness of Life, alongside multiple volumes of selected fiction by Shen Congwen. Among the translators and authors represented are Liang Xijiang, Yuan Xiaoyi, Yi Siting, Pan Lu, and Ren Guoqiang. Beyond the 142 titles in this catalog, public information is limited, so no further publishing details are given here.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 引子
- 第一章 重大使命
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第二章 三江潜伏
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第三章 索家大院
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第四章 世俗穿越
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第五章 暗中织网
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第六章 逼良为娼
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第七章 墙藏玄机
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第八章 进山察看
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第九章 信物接头
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十章 藏匿电台
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十一章 如约进城
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十二章 冻僵复活
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十三章 暗语发报
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十四章 雪夜强暴
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十五章 浮现疑点
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十六章 满沟尸体
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十七章 陡然变故
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十八章 印钞线索
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第十九章 电波飘浮
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第二十章 追踪蝴蝶
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第二十一章 宪兵行动
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第二十二章 模板运抵
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第二十三章 设点监视
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第二十四章 全城搜捕
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 第二十五章 钱币刺刀
- 一
- 二
- 三
- 四
- 尾声
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About the author
Xu Dahui, who also writes under the pen names Yanweizi and Zhengyan, was born in September 1956 in Shuangliao, Jilin. He is a member of the China Writers Association and holds a second-level literary creation professional title. He graduated from the Jilin Writers Advanced Study College in 1987 and has served as deputy editor-in-chief of the magazine Guandong Writers and as vice chairman and secretary-general of the Siping Writers Association. He began publishing in 1976 and has written 42 novels, including Undercover, Fleeing, The Rival and Snow Wolf, several of which have been adapted for television. His work spans otherworld fantasy, social fiction, mystery and suspense, and documentary literature. Representative titles include Risking Life, Snow Wolf, Huazi House, Control, Betrayal, Gunpoint, The Last Opium Pipe and Wolf Smoke, with 22 titles held in the collection. His writing tends toward tight plotting and sharp conflict, often moving between suspense and social reality.
