Mr. Muo's Travelling CouchHaving enchanted readers on two continents with Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, Dai Sijie now produces a rapturous and uproarious collision of East and West, a novel about the dream of love and the love of dreams. Fresh from 11 years in Paris studying Freud, bookish Mr. Muo returns to China to spread the gospel of psychoanalysis. His secret purpose is to free his college sweetheart from prison. To do so he has to get on the good side of the bloodthirsty Judge Di, and to accomplish that he must provide the judge with a virgin maiden. This may prove difficult in a China that has embraced western sexual mores along with capitalism–especially since Muo, while indisputably a romantic, is no ladies’ man. Tender, laugh-out-loud funny, and unexpectedly wise, Mr. Muo’s Travelling Couch introduces a hero as endearingly inept as Inspector Clouseau and as valiant as Don Quixote. |
Contents
Games of MahJongg | 3 |
A Miniature Aeroplane | 70 |
Backscratching | 78 |
A Movable Couch | 87 |
Mrs Thatcher of the Domestic Workers Market | 105 |
PART TWO UNDER COVER OF DARKNESS | 125 |
The Van in the Night | 127 |
Two a m | 140 |
Steamed Dumplings 3 10 1 8 5 25 44 70 78 87 105 127 140 144 | 161 |
PART THREE LITTLE ROAD | 183 |
Dont Swallow My Tooth | 185 |
The Head of the Dragon | 214 |
The Flying Sock | 242 |
The Old Observer | 247 |
The Sea Cucumber | 257 |
The Oriole | 264 |
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Common terms and phrases
already arms asked bamboo become blue body breath called Chinese close clothes coming dark domestic workers door dream driver drops Embalmer eyes face father feels feet finally fingers floor followed foot French Freud girl give glasses ground hair hand head hear holding imagined Jian Judge Judge Di least leaves light Little Road living Lolo look mind morning mother mountain Muo's never night Observer Old Moon once parents passing past perhaps play prison psychoanalyst rain reached remember rising seat secret seemed shoes side sleep smell soon sound steps stop Suddenly sure tell thing thought told took train turn virgin voice Volcano waiting window woman young