This collection showcases six of Liu Zhenyun’s best short stories: “Tofu,” “College,” “Office,” “Officials,” “Recruits,” and “Remembering 1942.” Together, they feature a diverse cast of ordinary people struggling against a variety of obstacles—bureaucratic, economic, and personal—that life presents, ranging from an exploration of office politics unmoored by an unexpected gift to the tale of young soldier attempting to acclimate to his new life. The titular piece Tofu tells the story of Xiaolin, an idealistic young man whose sharp edges are worn down by the trivialities of daily life, leading to the disillusionment of his ideals. In Xiaolin’s household, a pound of spoiled tofu takes precedence over the weighty matters of an international summit—it is a metaphor for the overwhelming minutiae that consume his life.

Each story is rich in wit, insight, and empathy, and together they bring into focus the realities of China’s past and present, evoking the often Kafkaesque circumstances of contemporary life in the world’s most populous nation.

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