"When a man is denied the right to live the life be believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw." Mary On The Run is 395,000-words three-volume YA fiction, it tells the story of a 20-year-old Chinese guy who's struggling to survive in the Chinese society, in hopes of finding love and freedom, and eventually becomes an outcast and goes to Afghanistan to join the U.S Army, yet the death of the girl who's saved him from the riots of Urumqi drives him back to Beijing to assassinate the head of the Chinese government. Mary On The Run is written in a subjective style from the point of view of its antagonist Mary, following his exact thought processes. The story is presented in a nonlinear narrative, as it jumps from various days within the 10-years span of Mary's life, each flashback is triggered by the previous event. It all starts at the moment when Mary is about to assassinate the Chinese Premier at the Great Hall of the People (Beijing) in June 6, 2011. Going to the Afghanistan look for the U.S Army is not a whim. As one of the outcasts of China, that seems to be the only choice left for Mary to choose--die of a noble cause, or survive to be a great fighter. Mary has never read any book of Hemingway, nor does he have any understanding of the world outside of a little town. He simply wants to be a stronger man, like one of the heroes of those American movies. His careless thoughts and actions make him a witness of the riots of Urumqi and the subsequent massacre, yet seeing the genuine act of violence hasn't taught him a lesson, for he still swears he will avenge his savior Alice's death and rebel against the Chinese government. The saying "time heals all wounds" does not apply in his case, as he has never been able to get over the loss of the people he loves. One year later, a mysterious woman named Liz appears, and it is just her, who finally brings Mary's life toward another direction... There is nothing funny about the story, since it is philosophical and educative. Themes of angst, alienation, materialism, inhumanity, the longing for belief and meaning in life are reflected in the novel. Yet the narrative is miserably amusing for its ironic mix of humor, eclectic dialogue, and you will always be eager to know what's going to happen next. Although each storyline focus on a different series of incidents, they connect and interact in various ways. The story not only deals with complex issues of identity, belonging, connection, and alienation, but also has a strong political context, which involves in the abuse of power of the government, the root of terrorist attacks, the rise of the cult Falun gong. Mary On The Run is a novel on a epic scale, moving inexorably from the decay of the Chinese society to the desperation of the lower class. In this book, the narrator reveals a panorama of modern Chinese by depicting more than a hundred characters, each character symbolizes a type of person. This is an encyclopedia for teens and young adults in the course of maturation, provides you with an overview of human society at present times.
