The Republic of Wine

The Republic of Wine: A Novel
First edition (Chinese)
AuthorMo Yan
Original title酒国/酒國
TranslatorHoward Goldblatt
LanguageChinese
GenreSatire, Detective novel, Comedy, social commentary
PublisherHong Fan (China)
Hamish Hamilton (UK)
Publication date
1992
Publication placeChina
Published in English
2000
Media typePrint
Pages356 (English)
ISBN0-14-025677-6
OCLC59544313

The Republic of Wine: A Novel (simplified Chinese: 酒国; traditional Chinese: 酒國; pinyin: Jiǔguó) is a satirical novel by Mo Yan, which was first published in 1992. The novel explores the relationship between Chinese people and food and drink, and comments on government corruption and excesses. It was translated to English by Howard Goldblatt.

The novel has two distinct narrative threads, one of a standard fiction form following a detective, and the other a series of letters between "Mo Yan" and an aspiring author who is a fan of his work. The book contains ten chapters; each chapter contains several parts. The "detective" thread follows a special investigator, Ding Gou'er, sent to rural China to investigate claims of cannibalism. The "letters" thread contains letters exchanged between Li Yidou, an aspiring author, and "Mo Yan", as well as short stories that Li Yidou sends to "Mo Yan". As the novel progresses, the focus shifts from the Ding Gou'er standard narrative thread to the Li Yidou/Mo Yan thread. Some characters appear in both threads.