A collection of poems, some scrawled on paper between food deliveries, has won China’s highest literary award for Wang Jibing.
Inspired by the everyday challenges delivery riders face, Low Flight won the Lu Xun Literary Award, named after the author considered the father of modern Chinese literature.
Wang, 56, who became a delivery driver around 2019, gained attention on social media for his poetry and essays.
He is part of a group of blue-collar workers whose literary work is acclaimed and provides a glimpse into the pressures they face in China’s large gig economy.
For Wang, the prestigious literary award comes after decades of working odd jobs.
In an interview with state-run media outlet Global Times on July 15, Wang said that when news broke that he had won the award, he “held my breath and was extremely nervous… Once it was made public, everything was resolved.” He added that the media attention around him put a lot of mental pressure on him.
The prize money for Lu Xun Literature Prize winners is not publicly announced. However, as of 2014, the amount is 100,000 Chinese yuan ($14,800, £11,000).
Mr. Wang, who was born in Wangsu Province, dropped out of school as a teenager due to difficult family circumstances. He worked at various jobs, including construction, garbage collection, and street vending, before becoming a food delivery person.
But his love of reading remained constant, and for the past decade he has been posting his poetry and essays on social media.
In 2022, one of his poems titled Man in a Hurry went viral online. This was inspired by an incident in 2019 where a customer spent hours waiting for a disappointing delivery after entering an incorrect address.
In 2023, he published his first poetry collection, Man in a Hurry: Poems of a Food Delivery Rider.
Wang added that despite receiving the award, he has no intention of quitting his job and plans to work until he is 60.
“They don’t need this job to make a living financially, but they like the atmosphere of the work and it keeps them healthy,” the Global Times report said. “I want a realistic life and this award will never change who I am.”
『Low Flight』, published in 2024, is a collection of poetry inspired by interviews and surveys conducted by Wang with about 200 delivery workers.
“Who said that spreading your wings means flying high? Flying low also means flying.” This is a line from his poem.
His victory comes as more and more blue worker collars have been gaining attention in literary circles in China in recent years.
Former courier Hu Anyan’s 2023 memoir, Delivering Parcels in Beijing, became an explosive bestseller in China and garnered media attention abroad. An English translation of the memoir was published last year.
Another title, I am Fan Yusu, is an autobiographical essay depicting the personal struggle of a migrant worker, which swept the Chinese Internet in 2017. The response was so enthusiastic that Pan Yusu had to leave home for a while due to constant media requests.
The literary prize’s namesake, Lu
Long remembered as one of China’s most important literary figures, Lu’s works have found new resonance among today’s younger generation. A few years ago, Kong Yiji, a character in his novel, became a meme symbolizing disillusionment among young Chinese people struggling to find work.
