Marrow: Digging Up Dark Truths in the Countryside

Marrow is not a new book. The original was written by Yan Lianke in 1999. But, with Penguin China's new translation of Marrow by Carlos Rojas, this short novella with its rural Chinese setting and its themes of sacrifice is finally available to an English-speaking audience.

Marrow is set in the Balou Mountains, a remote region in the central province of Henan. Fourth Wife You is trying to find a husband for her third daughter, who suffers from a mental illness. All of Fourth Wife's children are mentally disabled, which has made finding spouses difficult. The first half of the novella concerns Fourth Wife's visit to her first two daughters and to nearby villages in order to find another husband to take care of her children. Along this journey, she hears of a potential cure for her children's disease.