The Invisibility Cloak
by Ge Fei · first published 2017
5mentions
4recommended by
4HN commenters
2018first – last mentioned
100% recommend
An NYRB Classics Original The hero of The Invisibility Cloak lives in contemporary Beijing—where everyone is doing their best to hustle up the ladder of success while shouldering an ever-growing burden of consumer goods—and he’s a loser. Well into his forties, he’s divorced (and still doting on his ex), childless, and living with his sister (her husband wants him out) in an apartment at the edge of town with a crack in the wall the wind from the north blows through while he gets by, just, by making customized old-fashioned amplifiers for the occasional rich audio-obsessive. He has contempt
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The Invisibility Cloak by Ge Fei (2016). Chinese author and setting (contemporary Beijing). Following the theme of the solitary male antihero...a la Murakami.
on “Ask HN: What are some great books that are relatively unknown in the US?” ↗Enjoyed: - Chocky - John Wyndham - Convenience Store Woman - Sayaka Murata - The Eight Mountains - Paolo Cognetti - The Executioner Weeps - Frederic Dard - The Invisibility Cloak - Ge Fei - The Midnight Fox - Betsy Byars - Ms Ice Sandwich - Mieko Kawakami - Such Small Hands - Andres Barba - The Thief - Fuminori Nakamura - Ties - Domenico Starnone - Trick - Domenico Starnone
on “Ask HN: Favorite fiction books of 2018?” ↗I recommend reading the book The Invisibility Cloak by Ge Fei
on “Ask HN: What things have richly rewarded the time invested in mastering them?” ↗…protagonists -- and, while it may be an artifact of translation, they have similarly uncluttered but lively prose. She came a bit after he did, in the late 80s, so maybe he influenced her. In Chinese, Ge Fei's Invisibility Cloak -- while a much more recent work -- also comes to mind, although there's something harder and less dreamy about it. Invisibility Cloak is about a niche audio technician and hobbyist who gets involved…
on “Japanese Writing After Murakami” ↗…- Andre Agassi Why We Sleep - Matthew Walker World After Capital - Albert Wenger Fiction: Chocky - John Wyndham Convenience Store Woman - Sayaka Murata The Eight Mountains - Paolo Cognetti The Invisibility Cloak - Ge Fei The Midnight Fox - Betsy Byars Such Small Hands - Andres Barba The Thief - Fuminori Nakamura Ties - Domenico Starnone Trick - Domenico Starnone
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2018?” ↗