Might be a good idea right about now to make a reading selection that perhaps hints at the possibility that the soul is capable of transcending the baser instincts imprinted into humankind from primeval times to the present. There are so many books written into which the sad story of our inability to rise above the muck and mire of abysmal hatred for one another is interwoven.

Whether on the macro- or the micro-scale of human interaction we seem all too often to choose the path that leads to self-destruction with the thought that somehow 'we' are intrinsically, by birth, ethnicity, religion, ideology, social hierarchical standing, superior to the 'other'. And with that thought fixed firmly in mind, the other becomes somewhat less than human, less deserving of decent regard and therefore intolerable to us.

The compelling novel, The Ancient Ship by Zhang Wei, written originally for the Chinese reading public, and translated for a Western audience, traces the history of a small, northern town, the complexities of its heritage and pride, the rivalries between its family clans, growing industrialization and the intersection of natural environmental alterations in the landscape. Finally, and most tellingly, it details the influence of modern Chinese history and the role of communism in a village where communality is already deeply entrenched, but the new imperatives wringing all the goodness and compassion out of its people.

The recounting of the utter degradation of societal values, and later social mores - the dreadful, destructive behaviour adapted by people for whom that alteration in their values became all too easy - and the horrible manner in which the mob mentality was manipulated and used to sinister effect, utterly descending into depraved immorality and brutal slaughters, tells the story of a nation in the throes of lunatic social disorder.

The impossible suffering of people confused and fearful of the changes taking place around them, altering their lives, making them victims and onlookers to unbelievable human misery does not make for easy reading. The deprivation and starvation visited upon villagers for whom drought in an agrarian society spelled existential disaster is realized in the telling of an ancient legend made modern.

I would not hesitate to recommend the book for those of sound mind and well balanced in their understanding of human nature. It is a well written book evocative of a not-so-distant time in history. Even those in the West can recognize through rumours then clarifying truths (that amazed and shocked those who considered themselves civilized) that left us incapable of apprehending that millions died in a paroxysm of social and political upheaval, leaving tradition and pride in the mire of muck that the galloping horses of the Apocalyptic Great Leap Forward left in their wake.