To Live

To Live is a novel by novelist . It describes the struggles endured by the son of a wealthy land-owner after the Revolution fundamentally alters the nature of Chinese society. The contrast between his pre-revolutionary status as a selfish fool who travels on the shoulders of the downtrodden and his post-revolutionary status as a persecuted peasant are stark.

The novel includes interesting first-hand descriptions of some of the less successful aspects of Collectivist policy, such as communal agriculture and the attempt to build a village-based steel industry.