I Deliver Parcels in Beijing

This book is not purchasable in your country. Please select another book.
How does xigxag pricing work?

Listen to a sample

What to expect

Brought to you by Penguin.

A witty and humane account of one man, multiple jobs and what it means to live

Hu AnYan has held nineteen different jobs since he graduated. He’s been a convenience store clerk, a bicycle salesman, a security guard and a delivery driver (among many other things). Every time the work gets punishing or the bosses too bossy, he moves on, from city to city, carrying with him nothing but his copies of Chekhov and Carver. This is his story.

A runaway bestseller in China, I Deliver Parcels in Beijing is about what it’s like to try and make a living – and stay sane – in the gig economy. From the pecking order on a parcel-sorting factory floor to the perfect alcohol dose to get some daylight shut-eye before a punishing night shift, from the Kafkaesque bureaucracy of the hiring departments to the ideal layout of a delivery route, Hu illuminates the hidden lives behind the roles that keep our world going. But he also shows how, through the liberating power of literature, he finds solace, and even freedom in his existence.

Quietly radical, brimming with humanity and humour, this book asks: what does work really mean? What should it mean? And do any of us really know how to live?

© Hu AnYan 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Critics Review

Illuminating and often startling
Guardian
Hypnotic . . . I Deliver Parcels in Beijing is quietly revolutionary simply because it treats the minutiae of work itself as important. The bureaucratic nightmare of trying to get a company to onboard a new employee; the propensity of electronic delivery bikes to break down; the discomfort of delivering packages in the freezing cold, but having to wear fingerless gloves to type on a phone screen—that these can be the topic of a book is almost revelatory
Washington Post
An insightful, relatable, and often humorous account of working life in twenty-first-century China
Jacobin
Mr Hu’s straightforward prose and keen eye for detail capture the drudgery of gruelling low-wage work... Writing, Mr Hu insists, is an opposite pursuit, allowing him to express his individuality and depict that of other people. He has gone from shengchan, producing, to shenghuo, living
The Economist
Hu Anyan's reflections touch on universal concerns. The language may be Chinese, but the exhaustion is global. Britain's work culture, long defined by quiet endurance, has slipped into its own paradox: a nation that works longer hours yet produces less, where the promise of flexibility too often disguises instability
New Statesman

More from the same

Narrator

About xigxag

Experience the best audiobooks with xigxag, an innovative and user-friendly audiobook platform designed for seamless discovery, purchase, and enjoyment of your favorite titles. Our flexible pricing model offers bestselling audiobooks for less, providing affordable prices and the best audiobook deals without requiring a subscription. Perfect for gifting, xigxag also features convenient audiobook gift cards and in-app audiobook gifting options.

 

Beyond the listening experience, xigxag stands as an exciting alternative to big tech, embodying a strong commitment to sustainability and ethical practices. As the only B Corp certified UK audiobook service, we ensure a guilt-free listening experience from a leader in audiobook innovation.

 

Effortlessly search audiobooks, access honest audiobook reviews that evaluate both the content and narration, and easily discover hidden gems. Whether you prefer to download or stream top audiobook titles, xigxag provides the best possible listening experience anytime, anywhere, on the UK’s best independent audiobook app. Discover the future of audiobooks today.