People who are naturally gifted storytellers observe and feel the world through innocent eyes, touching those emotions and regrets in readers’ hearts that have yet to be tidied up—and they’ve also stirred my own private memories.
— Director Guan Hu

He writes about the lives of his generation, but not as a form of catharsis or as a book inspired solely by his own experiences. His understanding of literature runs much deeper: it is, in a sense, an act of “speaking for” others. The life of a whole generation can only be transformed into a lasting work of literature—and thus achieve immortality—through the voice of its representative. Gao Linyang is clearly someone who has come to this realization; if not chosen by fate, he has at least prepared himself to be selected. That is why I see him as a rare, self-aware writer.
When it comes to his fiction, every story springs from his personal reality or the realities around him. Yet Gao is far from a conventional realist; his work inevitably points toward the realm of myth and legend. In terms of language, Gao Linyang’s style is simple yet strives for precision. He avoids stylistic flourishes and eschews the clichés often associated with “intellectual” writing, yet his prose brims with humor and lively vitality. His stories are rich in narrative, detail, insight, and playfulness—but never preachy. Once you immerse yourself in them, their readability is truly exceptional.
— Writer Han Dong

We should pay attention to novelists like Gao Linyang and to the literary path he has forged. As the novel has evolved, it has expanded in all directions while also absorbing influences from every quarter—for instance, Gao Linyang draws on the tradition of legendary storytelling and brings insights from cinema into his fiction. Many of Gao Linyang’s novels feature captivating “strange children,” whose everyday lives he captures with a keen eye for the most familiar, resilient, and ceaselessly trembling moments. Born in the 1990s, these young people are becoming increasingly visible, increasingly striking, and increasingly resolute as they stand firm in our era.
— Critic He Ping

Gao Linyang seems like a writer who has burst forth from the last century in terms of his methods, emotions, and rhythm—but he is also undeniably new, bringing fresh experience, new techniques, bold courage, and radiant talent. He neither soars too high nor crawls along the ground; instead, he flies close to the earth with deliberate purpose. As a young artist, this makes him all the more endearing.
— Writer Yi Zhou

When screenwriters turn to fiction, one of the great strengths is that their narratives are concise and their prose is unpretentious. My favorite story in this collection is the one that shares the same title as the book—it brought me to tears at the end. There are certain kinds of novels that are just like this: they gradually hold your breath until you’re almost at your limit, then let out a deep sigh, as if breaking through the air itself.
— Jones Huang, reader

Two years ago, I watched “Wild Goose Lake,” directed by Wei Shujun and written by Gao Linyang. At the time, I found the film—a slice-of-life drama—to be full of fine lines but lacking in overall cohesion. Still, it didn’t matter: soon after, “The Wasteland by the River” came along, and it left no doubt about Wei’s extraordinary talent. Now, this collection of short stories, titled “Break Through the Air,” has once again confirmed Gao Linyang’s remarkable literary gift.
— Tao Jinhán, reader

I had expected this to be a very literary novel, but I was surprised to find that the stories are actually lively and charming. The language is really engaging, especially in the later stories, where the pacing is superb and the dialogue between characters feels incredibly vivid and lifelike.
— Sardine2, reader

★ Gao Linyang’s debut short story collection has been longlisted for the 8th Blancpain-IFP Literary Award! The author is an award-winning filmmaker from international film festivals in Rotterdam, Cannes, Pingyao, and elsewhere, serving as both director and screenwriter of “To Love Again” and screenwriter of “Striding into the Wind”.

★ Seven stories for those who refuse to keep disappointing themselves. A master at stirring memories, the author precisely captures the young generation’s sense of disorientation—and what they hold dear. Each story brims with vivid details, offering both deep understanding and a playful, mischievous edge.

★ When my surroundings fail to nourish me and instead leave me gasping for air, it’s time to break free—time to leave, to reclaim myself, and to step into freedom with myself.

Unconsciously, I find myself trailing behind certain people:
a sword-swallowing woman in a remote little town, her arrival as sudden as the first thunder of spring;
a baby girl who calls a squirrel to leap onto her shoulder, then together they soar into the clouds;
my genius desk mate, wielding a compass and straightedge as she journeys across the world with nothing but her art;
the girl whose ears still echo with the heart-wrenching roar of an elephant;
the man who resolves to give up everything in order to repay a single story;
myself, breathing deeply beneath a frozen lake under a blanket of heavy snow;
...

Living outside the confines of society’s rigid frameworks, they draw me in—drawing me not only to see them clearly, but also to see myself more clearly, and through that, to try to see the world itself more clearly.

We’ve all swallowed our burdens whole, letting them become part of us—until we meet one another and share the wounds we carry in common.
Let’s go. I may be silent, I may feel lost, I may even lose my keys—but at least my eyes are open, and I’ll see myself land softly and steadily.

Gao Linyang

Born in 1991 in Taiyuan, Shanxi, he is a film director, screenwriter, and writer.
His feature-film debut, “To Love Again”, won the Special Jury Prize of the Tiger Award at the Rotterdam International Film Festival as well as the FIPRESCI Prize from international film critics.
His screenplay “Striding into the Wind” was selected for the official lineup of the Cannes International Film Festival.
“Break Through the Air” is his first collection of short and medium-length fiction.

Sword Swallower
Stare straight ahead
Shatter the air for a moment
Friend Gao Yuanqi
Love Elephant
Raw Iron Drop Drink
Salty Snack