Liu Zongren: 6 Tanyin Alley, China Books, San Francisco, 1989.
A deeply affecting story about China’s turbulent ’50s and 60’s, as seen through the eyes of the people who live around a single courtyard in Beijing (6, Tanyin Alley). Written in lucid, direct English, 6 Tanyin Alley is a gritty yet restrained novel: its power comes from a gradual accumulation of details.
I came upon the book at a yard sale in Brooklyn: it appears to be out of print.