On the Field Path

Name: On the Field Path
ISBN: 9787533976897

付秀莹Zhejiang Literature and Art Publishing House · ChinaFeb 2025

4.0

Word count: 267K words
Chapters: 28
ISBN: 9787533976897

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Summary

This novel is a representative work by the accomplished contemporary writer Fu Xiuying. It won the Shi Nai'an Literary Award and was selected for the Annual Top Five Novels of Dangdai and the Shouhuo Literary Ranking. Fangcun—what can one say about it? It is merely the most ordinary of small villages on the North China Plain. In the village there are men and women. There are old people and children. There are roosters crowing and dogs barking, and there are quarrels and grudges. Some fields are still farmed; others were abandoned long ago. The moon waxes and wanes. …Over the years, some things have changed.

Editor's review

Following Love Spread Everywhere,陌上 is another major novel by Fu Xiuying, painting a panoramic portrait of contemporary rural China in transition. Set in a village called Fangcun on the North China Plain, the novel interweaves the fates of more than twenty main characters to trace the profound changes in rural social structure, ethical relations, and inner life under the tide of urbanization. Fu Xiuying's prose is delicate and restrained; she does not rush to grand historical conclusions but lets the texture and pulse of village life emerge naturally through the details of daily existence—a family banquet, a funeral, a few snatches of conversation. This practice of writing a "micro-epic" makes 陌上 stand out among the many works on rural themes. It is at once an elegy for traditional agrarian civilization and a sober observation of the emerging rural form. Characters such as Cuitai, Xiangluo, and Daquan—their struggles, calculations, tenderness, and helplessness—together form an emotional archive of ordinary people during an era of transformation. Reading 陌上, one not only feels the poetry and tension of the language itself but also, through the mirror of Fangcun, reflects on the inextricable and tangled spiritual bond each of us has with "rural China."

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in contemporary rural change and social transformation in China
Readers who appreciate delicate, dense literary language rich in the texture of everyday life
Researchers or students seeking to understand urban-rural relations and the fate of ordinary people through literature
Readers who enjoy rural epics in the vein of Qin Qiang and The Right Bank of the Argun

Not a good fit for

Lovers of popular fiction who seek strong plotting, fast pacing, and dramatic conflict
Readers completely unfamiliar with rural subject matter and lacking basic knowledge of or interest in it

Reading tips

It can be read alongside the author Fu Xiuying's short story collection Love Spread Everywhere to better appreciate her creative trajectory and stylistic evolution.
Readers may wish to slow down slightly and immerse themselves in her distinctive linguistic rhythm and detailed descriptions, savoring the lived atmosphere that suffuses the text.
The book can be read in comparison with rural works by writers such as Jia Pingwa and Liu Zhenyun, to consider how writers of different generations handle rural material differently.

About the publisher

Zhejiang Literature and Art Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Zhejiang Literature and Art Publishing House is a Chinese publisher specializing in literary publishing. Judging from the 808 titles in the database, its publishing areas cover world classics, foreign literature, social novels, folk literature and classic works, as well as modern and contemporary literature and prose. Representative titles include foreign literary translations such as Anna Karenina, The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, In Praise of Shadows and The Complete Tragedies and Comedies of Shakespeare, alongside classic works by Lao She and Lu Xun such as Camel Xiangzi, Teahouse and Wandering. Its authors and translators include Leo Tolstoy, Cao Ying, Lao She, Yukio Mishima, Jun'ichirō Tanizaki and Zhu Shenghao. The press emphasizes the translation and introduction of classic texts and the compilation of native literary works, giving equal weight to Chinese and foreign literature. Owing to limited public information, its specific series and editorial policies are not elaborated here.

版权信息
楔子
第一章翠台打了个寒噤
第二章香罗是小蜜果的闺女
第三章翠台的饺子撒了一地
第四章素台两口子吵架了
第五章小鸾是个巧人儿
第六章向日葵又叫望日莲
第七章大全大全
第八章银栓把短信发错了
第九章大全有个胖媳妇
第十章爱梨怀孕了
第十一章小别扭媳妇是个识破
第十二章臭菊成了儿媳妇迷
第十三章月亮走，喜针也走
第十四章兰月老师心事稠
第十五章春米给烫得泪汪汪
第十六章建信媳妇做了个梦
第十七章一村子的狗叫起来
第十八章老莲婶子怎么了
第十九章耀宗这个先生名气大
第二十章增志手机响个不停
第二十一章尴尬人遇见了尴尬事
第二十二章建信站在了楼顶上
第二十三章增产家的事
第二十四章找呀么找小瑞
第二十五章小梨回来了
尾声

FAQ

What kind of work is 陌上? What is it mainly about?

陌上 is a novel focused on contemporary rural realities in China. Taking "Fangcun" in North China as its microcosm, it depicts, through the interwoven fates of many characters, the disintegration and reconstruction of traditional rural ethics, human relations, and ways of life under the impact of urbanization and the market economy. It is a "rural panorama" full of everyday detail and the spirit of the times.

What are the characteristics of author Fu Xiuying's writing style?

Fu Xiuying's writing is distinguished by its delicacy, density, and lyricism. She excels at capturing the subtle details of daily life and the fleeting ripples of her characters' inner worlds. Her language is supple and resonant, and through seemingly plain narration she often conveys profound emotion and a sense of the times, giving her a highly distinctive voice among contemporary writers.

How is this book different from ordinary rural-themed novels?

Unlike some rural novels that emphasize historical narrative or the exposure of problems, 陌上 focuses more on presenting the complex texture of rural life itself and the inner world of its people. It has no single central plot; instead it uses a scattered perspective and a group portrait of characters, letting the shape of village life emerge naturally from many voices and viewpoints, with a stronger sense of the flow of life and greater literary quality.

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About the author

付秀莹 Author

Fu Xiuying is an author whose works are included in this Chinese book database; public information about her is currently limited, and her birth year, native place, education, and professional experience are not clearly documented. The database contains four of her works, including Moshang, Or Consolation, Or Gift, New China New Classics, and Who Is Crying Somewhere in the World at This Moment. Judging from their common categories in the database, her writing falls mainly into social fiction and prose miscellany. Her subjects tend to stay close to everyday life and the emotional experience of ordinary people, and her tone is delicate and restrained, with a reflective quality in the narration. Because biographical information remains incomplete, any assessment of her creative development and literary standing can only be a preliminary sketch based on the available titles; readers may begin with the works above to sense her orientation toward reality and her attention to the human heart.