Almost done reading Lu Xun's Old Tales Retold. I realize that I am losing 80% of it in doing so because, despite its footnotes, I do not have the original tales in their un-retold version, I am missing out on nuances about the famous personalities who lived within the era, I am discombobulated by how the author uses the stories to advance his political agenda, and I do not have a complete background of pre-PROC.

What I find fascinating is how the stories are written. They do not have typical beginnings, middles, and endings, they are unusually post-modern, and some even end abruptly. Within these stories, there are exquisite vignettes, such as that in which a princess gives birth to a length of iron, how a smith forged two blue swords from it, and how his son later sought to avenge his father, who was executed by the king.

Lu Xun is known as the forerunner of the cultural revolution in China. Most of his stories are dated 1935.

If I have any friend out there who is into Chinese political history, he/she is welcome to have this book.