Bird Talk and Other Stories by Xu Xu: Modern Tales of a Chinese Romantic

This collection of short stories now has me fascinated with the author, Xu Xu. The stories are mystical, other-worldly, and fascinating. Women ghosts appear and cast their spell over a man caught between worlds. Bird Talk is the story of a woman who prefers the conversation of birds to the hum drum life of household chores and education. As in the other story, the narrator is caught up in fascination for this rare creature. In all, this volume features five short stories. They may not have influenced Haruki Murakami, but the tone is much the same; since Xu Xu is widely read in China, one can assume this to be true. These stories are inherently amazing, but more so because the backdrop of Xu Xu’s writing is the emergence and dominance of the People’s Republic, which is antithetical to these existential writings. There is a modern sensibility to these stories, as esoteric as they may be. I long to read more by this author and to learn more about his life.