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Red Dust

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Red Dust

By: Ma Jian
Narrated by: William Rycroft
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About this listen

In 1983, Ma Jian turned 30 and was overwhelmed by the desire to escape the confines of his life in Beijing. Deng Xiaoping was clamping down on 'Spiritual Pollution'; young people were rebelling.

With his long hair, jeans and artistic friends, Ma Jian was under surveillance. One day he bought a train ticket to the westernmost border of China and set off in search of himself.

©2001 Ma Jian (P)2014 W F Howes Ltd Adventure Travel Asia Travel Writing & Commentary

Critic reviews

"His trek through China to Tibet is a beautiful, disturbing read – a new Wild Swans" ( Observer)
"Honest, raw, insightful... The Chinese equivalent of On the Road" ( Time)
All stars
Most relevant

What three words best describe William Rycroft’s performance?

Excellent, but all Chinese place names were pronounced incorrectly. If one is to narrate a book filled with Chinese place names, surely one should spend a short amount of time learning the rules of pronunciation (according to the pinyin system) rather than just guessing how to pronounce every word and getting it wrong.

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