A Single Swallow

A grand novel filled with tender sorrow about the devastating power of love. On the very day Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s surrender, ending World War II, three men swept up in jubilation swore to meet one day at the same place. But fate arranged otherwise: their paths crossed again only seventy years later, after the last of them had passed away. And then the ghosts of those three comrades returned to the very village—faithful to the promise made long ago. Only one person was missing from that meeting: a girl everyone called the Swallow, whom all three loved—each in their own way, but with equal strength—so each carried their memories to the very end and through to the afterlife.

Through these ghostly voices of the past, the story of the Swallow comes alive—full of pain and hardship, but also strength, courage, dignity, and freedom. The story of a woman who managed to unite three men and leave an indelible mark on each of their fates.

Listen to a mesmerizing, heartfelt love story performed by Grigory Perel, Makar Zaporozhsky, Ilya Slanevsky, Anastasia Shumilkina, Kirill Radzig, Oleg Bulhak, and Yulia Yablonskaya.

Press about the book: “Few writers could connect the story of China with that of other countries so organically as Zhang Lin does. I’d say it’s her merit as an author, and this is exactly where the value of her novels lies,” — Mo Yan, Nobel Prize laureate in Literature. “A unique plot about a ghostly meeting of soldiers and the first love of three men… the skillful use of newspaper clippings, military reports, and personal letters moves the story forward and effectively supplements the dialogues… excellent and strongly recommended,” — Historical Novel Society. “As a writer of outstanding insight and sensitivity, Zhang reveals many layers of the destructive burden that war placed on people, and especially on women. ‘Lonely Swallow’ has a unique narrative style and makes writers think about innocence and humanity through the lens of war,” — Chinese Literature Today.