A novel about a poor village in Henan where many people become ill with AIDS after selling their blood in an unsafe government-backed scheme. Told in part through the voice of a child who has died, it follows families, officials and profiteers as sickness spreads and desperate schemes appear. The book is angry and tender, mixing realism with dark irony. It is based on a real public health disaster in rural China and is notable for its moral force and compassion for the people affected.