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Yan Linggang (b. 1931) is a resident of Yanzhuang Village, Shandong Province. In this interview, Yan talks about the life during the Great Famine. The Great Leap Forward started in 1958: all land became the commune's property and everyone ate at the communal canteen. Soon the villagers were too hungry to work and the production decreased. The famine became worse in 1961 because of the flood. Like many other villagers, Yan took clothes and socks to Tai'an in exchange for dried yams. The policy of "Allocation of Land to Individual Households" was not put into practice in Yanzhuang Village until 1982, which was three years later than other places. After that, their life started to get better.

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Correspondence (one partial letter)