a novel, but, as the title suggests, it is presented as a dictionary

a novel, full of smaller, connected narratives, ultimately making for a sweeping picture of Maqiao and its people (and also, more generally, of China in these times)

a series of entries that are vignettes about the people and social customs of Maqiao

a thoughtful, subtle and ultimately sneaky novel

a wonderful, many-layered novel written as a series of definitions, which gains further depth from a good translation