Qianmei’s cancer is terminal, and everyone except her knows it.

She’s spent a lifetime Serving the People by penning a slew of complaints to superiors about the failings of colleagues and neighbours, no matter how small. Being confined to bed rest in a hospital just presents new targets.

As her family and doctors work on articulating the bad news, our principled comrade is visited by the victims of past petitions. Faced with the consequences of her words, does she now regret writing them? After all, regardless of how many letters might have reached the higher powers, there’s always time to make amends, right?

Missives from the Masses opens award-winning author Su Tong’s newest collection of short stories. From the girl in the window on bustling Mahogany Road to the unloved undertaker with seemingly cursed hands, these are darkly humorous and strange accounts of the hidden lives eked out during China's turbulent economic rise.

Translated by: Josh Stenberg