Heart Sutra

From "China's foremost literary satirist" (Financial Times) comes a captivating new novel set at a religious training center in Beijing, focusing on the unlikely love story of a Buddhist nun and a Daoist priest

At the Religious Training Center on the campus of Beijing's National Politics University, disciples of China's five main religionsBuddhism, Daoism, Protestantism, Catholicism, and Islamgather for a year of intensive study and training. In this hallowed yet jovial atmosphere, the institute's two youngest disciplesYahui, a Buddhist jade nun, and Gu Mingzheng, a Daoist masterfall into a fast friendship that might bloom into something more.

This year, however, the worldly Director Gong has an exciting new plan: he has organized tug-of-war competitions between the religions. The fervor of competition offers excitement for the disciples, as well as a lucrative source of fundraising, but Yahui looks on the games with...