The new memoir from prize-winning writer and filmmaker Xiaolu Guo - playful provocative and
original it's her deeply personal take on striving for a life of her own 'When it comes to
spinning light and shadow on the complexities of living loving and language Xiaolu Guo is one
of the most valuable writers in the world' DEBORAH LEVY The world can seem strange and lonely
when you step away from your family and everything you have tried to call your own. Yet beauty
may also appear. In the autumn of 2019 Xiaolu travelled to New York to take up her position as
a visiting professor for a year leaving her child and partner behind in London. The encounter
with American culture and people threatens her sense of identity and throws her into a crisis -
of meaning desire obligation and selfhood. This is a memoir about separation - by continents
by language and from people. It's about being an outsider and the desperate longing to
connect. Xiaolu uses her exploration of language (one of the meanings of the word 'radical' is
the graphic component or root of Chinese characters) and her own life to create this unique
text. At once a memoir a dictionary and an ardent love letter it is an expression of her
fascination with Western culture and her nostalgia for Eastern landscapes and an attempt to
describe the space in between. An archive of an artist's search for creative freedom it is
above all else an intimate account of her efforts to carve out a life of her own. 'Radical in
angle of attack smart and brave' IAIN SINCLAIR author of The Gold Machine
