Zhiguai: Chinese True Tales of the Paranormal and Glitches in the Matrix

Very interesting. I have enjoyed both books that I’ve read by authors. Thank you to publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book.

We all have that one inexplicable story, right? Maybe it didn't happen to you, maybe it's a family legend, but we all know one. Mine is the time – well, I won't go into it now, but trust me, it's strange, alarming and we've never come up with a logical explanation for it.
In the West, we call these stories 'a glitch in the Matrix' after the film, but the stories are not confined to us; everyone, everywhere in the world, experiences these strange events, puzzles and time skips. This collection comes from China and features stories from both the busy, populated cities and the quiet, remote rural areas – proving that these tales are not confined to one type of place or the other.

There's a great mix of stories too; some of them are ghost stories, some are time slips, some are plain old horror, and a few just can't be categorized. I think the one that will stick with me is about the boy who went to an apartment that wasn't quite his uncle's, although the most horrifying by far is the one about the baby girl. You'll know it when you come to it.

If you have a taste for the unexplained, for things that will make you look around suspiciously, for stories that will linger after you've read them...this is your book. Enjoy. I definitely did.



(Quick note on the translation; absolutely perfect, no stiffness or formality and concepts we might not be familiar with are explained without breaking the flow of the stories. Lovely.)

"You don't need millions of reasons to believe somebody exists when you meet them. You just do. There's nothing complicated about it".

Trigger warning: child abuse and animal abuse.

Zhiguai are the 'records of the strange' and span stories that tell of paranormal activity and alternate realities that collide with our own shared by Chinese citizens. The authors curated a wonderful collection of first-hand short stories from a variety of age groups recalling their weird, lived experiences. As an avid horror movie fan, seeing similar tropes from British stories transcend barriers and clearly thrive in Chinese culture too was exhilirating.

The stories were a great way of learning more about Chinese culture, ranging from the value of cats, application of substitutes and fortune telling. I have heard many true life accounts from people similar to 'A jump off the bus', which makes it even more intriguing and emphasises that despite all the differences in the world, People are fundamentally the same. Further, the comparison to Chinese literature favourite Zhuangzi's butterfly parable was glorious, making a link between the complexity of our thoughts and the complexity of the world we live in. Bravo.

'Yeye's' Girl' and 'Not That Brother' were my favourites hands down and left me with goosebumps at the end both. A firm believer of the supernatural, I can imagine the feelings of those who lived the moment and hope everyone else finds the same joy and wonder in these tales.

Thank you for delivering such a wonderful book Yi and John and thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I have always been interested in the occult, paranormal, the glitch in the matrix, and stories related to them. When it comes to truly terrifying horror, be it any medium, I have always turned to Asian tales of horror. While I have read my fair share of stories, I am more interested in the tales that people have experienced, tales that sound fictional except that someone has experienced the same in real life. When my friends and I would get together, I would be the one to turn the discussion to the paranormal. So when I came across this book, I was stoked beyond measure. I started devouring it as fast as I could.
I must share this with other readers before I delve into the review that I had a little background of the practices and traditions in China before starting this book, and I come from a place where some bizarre things have happened, so I wasn't put off by some of the descriptions that might trigger people. So I should tell you that the book should have come with trigger warnings.
Zhiguai is a Chinese term that roughly translates to "Records of the strange". These are tales that record the strange events that have occurred to people. Zhuangzi, the Chinese Taoist Philosopher coined the term and has recorded some of the earliest zhiguai, known in Chinese literature. Bear in mind that back in 200 to 300 BC, a lot of things were deemed strange, mostly to their being unidentified and unexplored. A lot of modern-day horror stories that have been depicted in films or books have their roots in classical zhiguai. This book is a collection of modern zhiguai. From a grandfather who visited his granddaughter after death, to cats seeking revenge and a grisly murder being solved by the victim who should be dead by every means, this collection has it all.
The subject matter has been categorized as non-fiction, depending on how you take it, it may be fiction for you. Nevertheless, it was a gratifying experience to read all the accounts that the authors have collected and compiled. The stories also point out the differences between the Eastern and Western way of storytelling and what is perceived as horror. You will also get a glimpse into Chinese traditions and culture. I liked that the authors' note at the start of each story. They provide some perspective about the story that is up ahead. This will be really helpful to the readers as they can choose whether they want to read that particular story or not.
Overall, it was a great reading experience for a horror lover.

This book was so much fun! Interesting tales of weird experiences and high strangeness in China perfect for some light spooky reading. I loved it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Empress Wu Books for providing me with a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Zhiguai is a collection of true paranormal stories collected and presented with a short blurb at the beginning of each. These are all fairly short - a few pages maximum - so perfect for when you don’t have much time. They are also deliciously creepy, and worth waiting for a dark night! I also really enjoyed having a look at Chinese beliefs and culture, and how that shapes the way they view the paranormal.

I really appreciated the content warning provided. Two of the stories were quite jarring to read, so I was grateful I was prepared and had the option to skip if I needed to.

This book is perfect for people who like their horror low key and on the paranormal side, and is also a really good entry book into reading about the paranormal.

"Zhiguai" can be traced back to the Chinese Taoist Philosopher Zhuangzi who used the term to refer to storyteller of the strange or "guai" this came to mean a strangeness rooted in a reality radically beyond the everyday, but claimed to be true by the storyteller.

This book had me completely hooked and finished in a single sitting. The stories collected here are Zhiguai, true tales of strangeness beyond our reality, "glitches in the matrix" . The tales are incredibly creepy but captivating and each one made me want to read on. I have always been interested in "paranormal" or "weird" events as my mother told me a lot about things that happened to her that couldn't be explained and I have had my own strange experiences, so the concept of "Zhiguai" has always been a part of my life although I never had a word for it. As well as this, I have always loved Japanese horror movies and their ability to genuinely terrify compared to American horror movies filled with cheap jump scares The writing is straightforward which adds to the weirdness of the world it creates and a wonderful juxtaposition makes the tales even more uncanny than if they used "literary" language. These tales are the sort that creep into your skin and stay there days, weeks, months, years after you read them, this general uncertainty as they are written as truth. Absolutely incredible author Yi Izzy Yu and translator and editor John Yu Branscum, I absolutely can't wait to read more!

Zhiguai is one of my new favorite books. Strange, true and unbelievable stories that will expand your mind. Chinese paranormal stories should be more popular in the west because these stories are truly the most exceptional.

A really fun to read book that makes you question everything you know. I'm not normally a fan of short-story books but in this case, it is a compendium of weird and unexplainable events that is really easy to read in bite-size chunks. Some of it harrowing, some of it just downright weird. Recommended.