•This book represents our interest in books on cultural and social issues, joining such award-winning books as Fighting for Space (on the opioid crisis), Dead Reckoning (on transformative justice), and Care Work (on disability justice). The Rat People is an exposé of the human cost of capitalism: in Beijing, over 1 million people live underground in inhumane conditions beneath the streets of the city, in a vast network of deep tunnels and former bomb shelters. Shockingly, the majority of them have jobs, having come to the city in search of a better life, but they do not earn enough to own or rent a proper home. They are referred to disparagingly as the shizu (“rat people”).

•French journalist Patrick Saint-Pierre spent two years living among the shizu. His book gives humanity to these residents who work tirelessly in service of China’s economy by day, only to return home at night to a dark, despairing place. It’s also a searing critique of the sacrifices made in service of monster economies, as well as the world’s uncritical admiration of them.

•China remains a focal point of the world’s attention for a variety of reasons, including its booming economy, its human rights abuses, its relationship with Hong Kong, and in its ongoing battles with the Trump administration. This book shines a light on the price paid by China’s workforce in moving its economy forward, a subject which has implications for other economies headed in the same direction, including America’s. The division between the rich and poor continues to grow, and if left unchecked, we will see the same kind of dystopian nightmares developing here.

•US publicity by Michelle Blankenship, Michelle Blankenship PR. The author speaks excellent English.

© 2020 Arsenal Pulp Press (Ebook): 9781551528045

Translators: David Homel

Release date

Ebook: 23 June 2020