THE ZOO AT THE END OF THE WORLD

*First print run of 50,000 copies
*Yann Martel's LIFE OF PI meets Borges and Miyazaki
*An audacious and whimsical novel about faith, history, and man's special bond with animals

In the early days of the 20th century, the Qing Empire is in its death throes. The once powerful Empress Dowager has passed, the fate of her favorite zoo uncertain, and the animals can only wait to be auctioned off – before they starve to death. Enter their unlikely savior: an American missionary named Morgan Colloway, who dreams of bringing God's word to the inner provinces of China. He decides to purchase some of the animals with his limited budget, and thus embarks on an epic – most would say crazy – journey, its destination: a remote city called Chifeng on the Inner Mongolian grasslands.

It is a strange and motley crew: an elephant, a lion, two zebras, five baboons, a budgerigar, a python. They will be tested by bandits, and befriend a Mongolian shamaness who walks the dream road, a wolf pack disguised as monks and a mute boy who turns out to be an animal whisperer. Religions will clash, dreams will be broken, but faith shall not diminish if you choose to believe. And it was so.

From the pen of China's most unpredictable young writer, THE ZOO AT THE END OF THE WORLD is a magical adventure story and a stunning parable of faith. Written in lyrical prose and suffused with humor and breathtaking imagery, this is Ma Boyong at the height of his power and a tribute to his beloved hometown.


Winner of the People's Literature Prize, Zhu Ziqing Prose Award, and the Galaxy Award, Ma Boyong (b.1980) is one of the most prolific and critically acclaimed young novelists in China, best known for his wicked wit and
uniquely subversive take on genre tropes. He has written over a dozen novels, including The Antique Game,
The Three Kingdoms Confidential, and The Dragon and the Subway, many being adapted into film and TV.
Two of his stories have been translated into English by Ken Liu.