Alai's King Gesar will be published in English in 2012, as part of the Canongate Books' Myth Series. [Photo/China Daily]

Tibetan author Alai's King Gesar provides easy access to the classic and lengthy adventures of the legendary ruler. Liu Jun reports.

Gigme wakes up to find himself in a pigsty, covered in manure, clueless as to his whereabouts.

"I don't deserve this! You shouldn't have treated me like this!" he yells, while children and suspicious villagers laugh.

He has every reason to be angry. For several years, he has been journeying on foot, telling stories about King Gesar, the legendary Tibetan hero whose tales are wildly popular throughout Central Asia.

Gigme, who used to be a poor illiterate herder and is blind in one eye, is one of the few gifted ballad singers who claim they were entrusted with the mission of spreading Gesar's glory in a dream.