[4] While reception among Chinese critics was generally negative,[6] the novel was shortlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize and awarded France's Prix Courrier International in 2008.

[7][8] It was translated into English by Eileen Cheng-yin Chow[9] and Carlos Rojas in 2009, a couple from the Middle Eastern department at Duke University.

Their life, both absurd and tragic, throughout China's history from the 1960s to the early period of Chinese Economic Reform serves as the main plot.

The second part focuses on their adulthood with different life trajectories, especially during the early period of Chinese Economic Reform that formulates the mixture of absurdity and tragedy.

The "Miss World competition", "Tourism Queen International pageant", "National Contest of the Beauty of the Gray-headed for contestants over fifty-five", and "Miss Artificial Beauty pageant for plastic surgery recipients" are representative of the trend of absurdity in China that encouraged Yu Hua for the continuation of the novel that is of the reality of absurdity.

[12] Turns out, the reality of absurdity is demonstrated in the novel, especially in Part 2 with a fictional event called "National Virgin Beauty Competition".

Their life of childhood and adolescence accompanied by their parents, Li Lan and Song Fanping, as a reorganized family amidst the rising and falling during the Culture Revolution period is depicted in Part 1.

[11] Before the birth of Baldy Li, his biological father falls into the cesspool and drowns himself while peeping at women's butts in a public latrine.

When Baldy Li becomes a teenager, he is caught and marched by Poet Zhao and Writer Liu as punishment for peeking at five women's butts in a latrine.

Even though Baldy Li's good name is ruined, he begins to sell his glimpse of the naked bottom of Lin Hong, who is the most beautiful woman in Liu Town, in exchange of house-special noodles.

Song Fanping escapes from the warehouse and tries to pick Li Lai up in Shanghai as he promised, but he is beaten and tortured to death by the Red Guards at the bus depot of Liu Town.

Li Lan purchases a coffin and brings his body to his birth town where Song Gang is picked up by his grandfather to live in the countryside.

Li Lan remains loyal and steadfast for seven years after the death of Song Fanping by refusing to wash her hair.

She then takes care of Baldy Li's orphan aid with Tao Qing and prepares her death affairs and visits Song Fanping's grave for the Qingming holiday.

She requests Song Gang to take care of Baldy Li by entrusting the boys to remain brothers and to always be fair by splitting.

Lin Hong is sick of Baldy Li's notorious reputation but interested in Song Gang's grace and elegance.

Baldy Li gets heart-broken but produces a profit miracle one after another at the Good Works Factory made up of disabled men.

In response, Baldy Li secretly gives money to Lin Hong and requests her to send Song Gang for medical treatment.

Wandering Zhou, a charlatan, begins to make a profit during the competition by selling fake hymens international and domestic to the virgins.

Song Gang comes back to Liu Town and hears about the affair between Baldy Li and Lin Hong.

[1] Some novelistic events such as the lawsuit between Baldy Li and the women with whom he slept, the Virgin Beauty Competition with the hymen economy, and Song Gang's breast surgery with the goal of selling the boobs bust-enhancing cream are all farce.

[17] For instance, Yu Hua's depiction of the Virgin Beauty Competition was inspired by the real-life farce of "beauty-pageant fever" during China's early opening-up.

[11] This is to say, the novel of massive farce is the combination of both reality and absurdity to demonstrate the distorted and money-oriented human nature during the early period of China's opening up.

"[4] Much of his distaste is masked in his novels through literary devices such as understatement, humour, inversion, self-mockery, ambivalent satire and subtle irony.

[20] This is an alternative to how Yu Hua's works often got translated as the English version would commonly be published after the European languages, e.g. French, Italian, German were released.

The prize aims to reward a French-translated publication in the form of "an essay, a story or a novel...which would be a testimony of human condition in a given part of the world".

[26] Due to the particularly politically sensitive subject matter and vulgar language, Yu Hua's novel received generally harsh reviews from Chinese literary critics, despite selling nearly one million copies in China.

Yu has not been shy in his dissent for China's policies and corruption, even admitting "I stipulate in all my contracts that my manuscripts can't be touched editorially; not a word can be taken out.

[citation needed] Between April 2008 and January 2009, less than a year after publication, Yu Hua's Brothers has amassed more than fifty review from newspapers, radio and television programs, in addition to internet sites which ranged from brief to extensive.

[5] Positive Commentary in the Eyes of Chinese Reviewers[29] David Barboza of The New York Times noted in September 2006 that while many in China had panned the novel, others had "praised the work as a compelling picture of an increasingly materialistic, self-indulgent and even unhinged society.