Strange Tales from Liaozhai - Vol. 5The weird and whimsical short stories in Strange Tales from Liaozhai show their author, Pu Songling (1640-1715), to be both an explorer of the macabre, like Edgar Allan Poe, and a moralist, like Aesop. In this first complete translation of the collection's 494 stories into English, readers will encounter supernatural creatures, natural disasters, magical aspects of Buddhist and Daoist spirituality, and a wide range of Chinese folklore. Annotations are provided to clarify unfamiliar references or cultural allusions, and introductory essays have been included to explain facets of Pu Songling's work and to provide context for some of the unique qualities of his uncanny tales. This is the fifth of 6 volumes. |
From inside the book
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... couldn't say for sure. But how did these come to be here?” Zhao looked at Lu, who answered, “This is easily explained: some of the pots belonging to the minister's family had become damaged and were being repaired here; this pot's no ...
... couldn't see anyone he recognized. One day, as he was watching attentively, he suddenly felt his body enter the estate and pass successively through three gateways, the place devoid of any signs of people. There was a government office ...
... couldn't simply seize her by force, so he took his cousin Chen Shijiu with him when he went. As they approached the Zhou family gate, it was shut, barring their entrance. Shijiu, a habitual troublemaker, started shouting obscenities ...
... couldn't afford to go home. Xijiu at that time took pity on them all and helped them out. The collector of these strange tales remarks, “No good deed is greater than that of filial piety, and the spirits all acknowledge the same ...
... couldn't. Tao suspected that Yu was just being stingy, so he scolded him for withholding the details of the technique. “Brother, honestly, you've misconstrued my intentions,” Yu protested. “I didn't want to talk about it, but not ...