Leaf through: worth reading books of 2012 (6)

（China Daily）  10:23, January 09, 2013

Jia Pingwa's latest work zooms in on the inner struggles of a gentle and idealistic college graduate, named Dai Deng, during her service at a township government office in the harsh and remote Qinling Mountains.

Dai's challenging duty is to settle disputes and maintain peace among villagers.

While dealing with the complications, Dai inextricably stands in the center of China's vast social reality, and her experiences cast light on the drastic changes the countryside has gone through.

Cheng Yongxin, chief editor of Harvest magazine, says that besides its social significance, the book with its lucid and lively language, shows Jia's efforts to shun his colloquial language that sometimes fails to appeal to a wider audience.