Liao Yiwu: Love in the Time of Mao Zedong
Liao Yiwu calls the admiration for Mao the „most impressive idolatry“ of the 20th century. To the Red Guards, he was like a god who could even mysteriously arrange love affairs. At least, that is what Zhuang Zigui, the protagonist of Liao’s novel „Love in the Time of Mao Zedong,“ believes. For the 17-year-old, the hardships of adolescence are heightened to an unbearable level by the plights of the Cultural Revolution; life between power-drunk agitation and bleak rural deportation degenerates into one big mood swing.