"The Day the Sun Died" author calls his book a predictive allegory

Depending on your feelings about a certain classic it’s compared to, you may or may not find yourself interested in Yan Lianke’s novel The Day the Sun Died.

In it, the residents of a small Chinese village spend a twenty-four-hour span — similar to James Joyce’s Ulysses, though this one has no light, as you might guess — sleepwalking in dangerous, gruesome ways.

Yan acknowledges that the novel is a bit of a metaphor for contemporary Chinese society but prefers to call it a predictive allegory.

Through a translator, he discussed his new book and writing background with Weekend Edition’s Scott Simon.

You can listen below or read the transcript on NPR’s website.