Yiyun Li Non-Fiction books in order

Yiyun Li's non-fiction includes translations of Lu Xun, a memoir about depression, and a reading project on Tolstoy's War and Peace.

Reading order

# Title Published Author Buy on Amazon
1 The Real Story of Ah-Q and Other Tales of China: The Complete Fiction of Lu Xun 2009 Yiyun Li Buy
2 Dear Friend, from My Life I Write to You in Your Life 2017 Yiyun Li Buy
3 Tolstoy Together: 85 Days of War and Peace with Yiyun Li 2021 Yiyun Li Buy
4 Things in Nature Merely Grow 2025 Yiyun Li Buy

Yiyun Li’s non-fiction includes her translation of Lu Xun’s complete fiction (2009), the memoir Dear Friend, from My Life I Write to You in Your Life (2017), and Tolstoy Together (2021). The memoir examines her experience with depression and hospitalization, and how literature sustained her.

Things in Nature Merely Grow (2025) is her most recent non-fiction work.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books are in the Yiyun Li Non-Fiction series?

There are four books in the Yiyun Li Non-Fiction series, published between 2009 and 2025.

What is the first book in the Yiyun Li Non-Fiction series?

The first book in the Yiyun Li Non-Fiction series is The Real Story of Ah-Q and Other Tales of China: The Complete Fiction of Lu Xun, published in 2009.

What non-fiction has Yiyun Li written?

Dear Friend, from My Life I Write to You in Your Life (2017) is a memoir about Li’s struggles with depression and her relationship to reading and writing. Tolstoy Together (2021) grew out of a pandemic reading project where she guided readers through War and Peace on social media. She also translated Lu Xun’s complete fiction.

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