10 Best Novels Translated From Chinese into English 2024: Which One is Your Favorite?

What are the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English in 2024? Let's just say three of them are Strange Beast of China, The Day The Sun Died, and The Shadow Book. Talking about the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024, it should be noted that it turns out that there are many enthusiasts who really enjoy reading novels that have been translated from Chinese to English.

Because it turns out that Chinese literature also has stories and storylines that are interesting to explore. So there are lots of Chinese novels scattered around, but this article will discuss the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 that you can read.When studying Chinese literature, of course the novels that have been published usually tell things related to history wrapped in drama and life stories of the characters that appear.

Since the original novels are in Chinese, quite a few people who can speak English want these Chinese novels translated into English.

The 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 which will be discussed in this article are a collection of the best novels that you can still read in the years to come.

You can add these novels to your collection at home and after reading them maybe there will be lessons to be learned from them. So, what are the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 that you need to know? Here's the review.

1. Strange Beast of China

Strange Beast of China, written by Yan Ge, is one of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024, where the translator is Jeremy Tiang.This novel has a very imaginative but very real storyline, even though it was only written by Yan Ge, who was only 21 years old when this novel was published.

Set in the city of Yong'an, many of the characters are described as similar to elves and dwarves. The human character here will play the role of someone who studies the elves and dwarves, where he will build a relationship with them. Of course, their behaviour patterns were very unique and amazing, as were their own origins and powers. The narrator will tell his own past so that the narrative that emerges spans more storylines. This novel, with a gloomy but also enjoyable storyline, will make you addicted to reading it non-stop, especially because this novel invites you to imagine things.

2. Fu Ping

As one of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024, Fu Ping was written by Wang Anyi and translated by Howard Goldblatt. Set in a time and place that is far from modern, aka ancient, this novel still has a strong 20th century atmosphere. This novel focuses on Fu Ping and Nainai who live their lives by working, and the fate that takes them in a certain direction so that the narrative is broader and bigger.

Of course, you will learn a lot about life from families who lived in Shanghai in the 20th century. Your mind will be more open about what Shanghai really is like through Nainai's character, apart from what the public knows about Shanghai. The dialogue that appears in the novel is very concise, but the storyline really inspires readers.

3. The Day The Sun Died

So what other novels from the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 should you read? Call it The Day The Sun Died. This novel was written by Yan Lianke and translated by Carlos Rojas. Yan Lianke is said to be one of the Chinese novel writers who is still alive today.

Yan Lianke has even been mentioned as a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature, despite his novels being banned from publication in his own country due to talking too much about politics. Therefore, the novel The Day The Sun Died also has the same theme, namely the author mentions things related to the rhetoric of the Chinese government. It is told in this novel that residents wake up when it is dark, and continue to carry out their daily activities with their eyes closed.

Even a child has to watch his own family work all night without thinking about the consequences. Chaos ensued. When you read this novel, you will be invited to think logically but a little extreme. Whatever it is, this novel is still one of the best novels in China, and you can still read it in 2024.

4. Red Sorghum

Red Sorghum, as one of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024, is a Chinese novel by Mo Yan translated by Howard Goldblatt. It turns out that the novel Red Sorghum is not only the best novel written by him, but also one of the most successful translated novels in China.

For those of you who like the atmosphere and strong nuances when Japan invaded China in the 1930s, you must read this novel. Various heartbreaking incidents will make you feel sad and angry when you read it. Especially when this novel has the atmosphere of 2 future generations after the Japanese invasion.

5. Chronicle of a Blood Merchant

Chronicle of a Blood Merchant by Yu Hua is one of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 which has been translated by Andrew Jones. This novel, according to Yu Hua's writing style, is full of criticism in its story and looks challenging.

This novel is set in time and place during Mao's Cultural Revolution, at which time millions of people died due to the famine that struck. The male character in this story also has a heartbreaking story of survival. He was even willing to sell his own blood to the head of the area where he lived in order to be able to support his own family. Plus, in the end he found out that one of his children was not his own.

Obviously, this novel tells about a moment when life became very difficult. You will cry when you read it, because the story is so heartbreaking.

6. China Dream

One of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 is China Dream, written by Ma Jian and translated by Flora Drew. Even though this novel was published at the end of 2018, you are obliged to read it because this novel is highly recommended. This novel is very ambitious, and seems full of enthusiasm.

You will be presented with a reality story wrapped in fantasy. The author himself has always been diligent in voicing the rights of Chinese people and carrying out political protests against the Chinese government regarding human rights violations. If you want to motivate yourself, you can read this cool novel. It could be that you are braver to speak out publicly.

7. Ghost Music

What are some of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 that you need to know? Call it Ghost Music by An Yu. This novel by An Yu was written directly by herself in English, even though she herself spent a lot of time in Beijing and Hong Kong.

This novel tells the story of a woman and her husband who live with her mother-in-law in Beijing, because her biological mother was lost somewhere, year by year. The husband works at a car company and apparently, the mother-in-law said that her son was not an only child. In fact, she often tells his wife about his child's past.

Meanwhile, his wife is a piano teacher, whose talent was taken from her mother, the one who was lost and previously a famous pianist. In this novel, there will be strange dreams, including mushrooms that can talk, and a village that will later sink and be submerged in orange dust. The essence of this novel is about family, as well as about how we accept ourselves, love ourselves, and be honest with ourselves.

8. The Shadow Book

Another one of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 that you must read is The Shadow Book of Ji Yun. This novel, translated by John Yu Branscum and Yi Izzy Yu. Actually, this book is not a novel, but a collection of short stories that are interesting to read.

The content tells about spiritual experiences and supernatural phenomena, such as the first person to meet a spirit. These stories were written by the author based on the experiences of people he met during his life, be they traders, colleagues, politicians and so on. Because Ji Yun is a politician and philosopher, he dares to claim that the stories he writes are true events in the real world. Not only are the stories mystical and scary, you can also read beautiful and inspiring stories in this book. There are even stories that make the impossible possible and extraordinary.

9. The Wedding Party

The Wedding Party by Liu Xinwu is one of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 that you must read. Translated by Jeremy Tiang, this novel was published in 1985, where the story has a post-revolutionary war nuance in China.

Maybe you are aware that in the 1980s, there were rarely fiction stories or films set in China, especially in that year. The Wedding Party depicts a story where Chinese workers in the early 80s have a touching picture of their lives, dreams and past.

At that time there was a wedding between Aunt Sue's son and a woman, where the wedding party was held from morning until dusk. In this novel, you will realise several perspectives, as well as colourful characters, so you will learn a lot in it. The story in this novel is very detailed and interesting, so you don't just focus on 1 character, but all the characters in the novel. This novel is warm, suitable for those of you who don't like fictional stories or stories that are too heartbreaking.

10. Ninth Building

Ninth Building by Zou Jingzhi is one of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 which you must also read. Translated by Jeremy Tiang, this novel consists of fiction and non-fiction. At least you will find and read narratives related to the author who lived during Mao's Cultural Revolution.

Please note that this novel has two parts. The first part tells the story of the author's childhood in Beijing, where at that time he really liked to pit his neighbours against each other due to the confusion he experienced. And in the second part of this novel, the author's father is imprisoned, while the author is exiled and does forced labour in North China.

There are lots of moral messages that you can get when reading this novel. You also understand how the author became a strong person facing difficult challenges, so that he could become a Chinese artist and poet. You will be inspired by the character of the author of this novel, and will be motivated to face life's challenges.

Conclusion

Those are the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 that you must collect and read as a lover of literature, especially Chinese literature. Of the 10 best novels translated from Chinese into English 2024 mentioned above, are there any novels that you have read? Or if you haven't read it, which novel would you like to read? And if you have read all the novels, which novel is your favourite? Of course you have your own reasons for that.

However, the 10 novels above are translated novels which have been selected as the best Chinese novels ever. And the 10 novels above have extraordinary writers who dare to satirise life in a bad political era. Wrapped in personal stories and experiences, it makes us as readers feel as if they feel what they feel and think. There are many lessons and messages that we can take from these stories, and in the end you will understand the culture of the Chinese people in the times described in the novel.

You will have a lot of insight when reading these novels. Because these novels are not just mainstream novels that tell stories about love. But about life with a political background. Obviously, the writers of these novels also have broad insight when writing the story, so that the results don't look just random. Not a mainstream novel that looks ordinary.