Soul Mountain by Gao Xingjian (prounouned gow sing-jen)
Gao Xingjian received the first Nobel Prize in Literature awarded to a Chinese writer in 2000, "for an œuvre of universal validity, bitter insights and linguistic ingenuity, which has opened new paths for the Chinese novel and drama". His novel "Soul Mountain" about "one man's quest for inner peace and freedom" defies the rules of fiction. This unconventional narrative has no plot, characterization, climax or resolution. It is a loose collection of travel notes, memoirs, folktales and Chinese legends. Australian Mabel Lee translated the novel to English and many readers and critics found it a complex read that is fascinating and baffling at the same time. It takes the reader on a meandering trip through the primeval forests and countryside of southwest China in a search for truth.
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