the most deeply human book of the year." -Alex Perez, Washington Examiner " Leave Society introduces the reader to two of the most endearing literary characters in recent memory: Li's parents, simply referred to as Li's mom and Li's dad-and their beloved family dog, Dudu, who serves up a great deal of comic relief." -Zach Ravas, Zyzzyva " Leave Society is a novel not of disappearance but of rebirth and attachment to the things that truly matter. "If Lin's earlier books felt voiced by a human resigned to becoming an automaton, then this one speaks in a voice of resistance." -Adam Wilson, Bookforum "Lin's language is spare but carefully selected, bristling with radiant strangeness." -Will Harrison, The Hudson Review On the second reading, when I was better accustomed to Lin's humor and his delight in multiplicity, seemed to me both metaphorical and literal, playful and quite serious, a brilliant, almost perfect ending." -Lamorna Ash, Los Angeles Review of Books "Lin introduces a radical shift in outlook, a change from a posture of boredom to one of awe. Though his book will undoubtedly be categorized as autofiction, it is as much a retreat into the imagination as a reflection of lived events." -David Fishkind, The Believer "At a time when so much media is set on dichotomizing, there are no hard lines drawn by Lin. "Li's attempts to midwife the universe through mindfulness give rise to brief sunbursts of poetic exuberance." -Andrea Long Chu, The New Yorker There is something brave in leaving a character so undefended." - Christine Smallwood, The New York Times Book Review "Stylistically, the book is artful, even radical. One of Bookforum 's Best Books of the Year Illuminating and deeply felt, as it builds toward a stunning, if unexpected, romance, Leave Society is a masterly story about life and art at the end of history. But how to fit these pieces of his life together? Where to begin? Or should he leave society altogether?Įxploring everyday events and scenes-waiting rooms, dog walks, family meals-while investigatively venturing to the edges of society, where culture dissolves into mystery, Lin shows what it is to write a novel in real time. He will incite and temper arguments, uncover secrets about nature and history, and try to understand how to live a meaningful life as an artist and a son. As he flies between these two worlds-year by year, over four years-he will flit in and out of optimism, despair, loneliness, sanity, bouts of chronic pain, and drafts of a new book. He doesn't know it yet, but his life will begin to deepen and complexify on this trip. In 2014, a novelist named Li leaves Manhattan to visit his parents in Taipei for ten weeks. An engrossing, hopeful novel about life, fiction, and where the two blur together. (Aug.From the acclaimed author of Taipei, a bold portrait of a writer working to balance all his lives-artist, son, loner-as he spins the ordinary into something monumental. Lin’s fans might appreciate this, but it doesn’t offer anything new. Much of the action and descriptions are banal, and aside from the romance, this feels a bit too detached and devoid of emotion for a book ostensibly about learning to live. After a friend moves into his Manhattan building, a surprisingly tender romance blossoms between them. When in Taipei, he hopes to improve his health and cultivate artistic inspiration (“living with his parents felt slightly surreal in a way that was satisfying for both his life and his novel”). Back in Manhattan, Li battles intense back pain, writers block, dwindling finances, and loneliness. “The world seemed more complex, terrible, hopeful, meaningful, and magical than he’d previously thought or heard,” Lin writes of Li’s reaction to McKenna’s work. Shortly after Li’s arrival in Taipei to visit his parents, he reconsiders having surgery on his concave chest, which he’d declined in the past, and becomes increasingly inspired by McKenna’s views on psychedelics. Lin ( Trip) continues his interest in real-life mystic Terence McKenna with the underwhelming story of a Lin-like New York City novelist facing a crossroads as he travels back and forth between New York City and Taipei.
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