A couple buy a racing dog thinking it will be the key to great fortune. But when gambling is forbidden the family must find another use for the dog . . . A wealthy factory owner - once a rural peasant - whose altruism is tested in the wake of a horrific earthquake. A powerful gangster clashes with his homosexual grandson. A glassworker is tasked with building a giant crystal sarcophagus for Chairman Mao. Jack Livings is a fabulously compelling new voice in contemporary fiction. These are his stories of modern China. 'Exceptional. I read it as slowly as I could and still finished it in a day. It is done with so much understanding and conviction, you'd think you'd been there.' Michael Hofmann, TLSBooks of the Year