Seventy authors. Three cities. More than 100 events. The Bookworm International Literary Festival (BILF), a two-week celebration of the word – spoken, written, performed – and wordsmiths has grown from 15 to 70 authors in just four years, and not just in numbers.

Compared to most Western chefs, Chinese ones serve up more vegetables, barring the strictly vegetarian cook. Greens appear on the Chinese table in many ways, both cooked and uncooked.

Migrant workers are an oft-neglected aspect of the Chinese economic success story. While there have been other books on them, a new novel offers an impressive account of what it means to be one, by someone who has lived that life.