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2005-12-19 11:35:12
From: JmeDoom
(Asheville, The Sea)
I have three: From an Expat/Foreigner living in China view, I did enjoy River Town by Hessler, but I wouldn't call that a tour de force or a book that gave me much insight about China. It was more a fish-out-of-water experience of a teacher in a small town. It is fun and whimsical, and I have much respect for Hessler.
My second favorite book is the Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang. I read this book after I had been to Nanjing and had been to the Nanjing Massacre Museum. This book was at once powerful and sad. That humans can treat fellow humans in such a manner is one of the the tragedies of mankind.
The third book I would say I enjoyed is Waiting by Ha Jin. Jin is recognized as a great writer in the States. He won a Pulitzer. However, maybe this wasn't his strongest book.
Other books I have read about China include, Riding the Iron Rooster, Iron and Silk, Wild Swans and The Coming Collapse of China. I consider Iron Rooster almost unreadable, and the writing in Wild Swans a bit stale. I think I am still waiting to read my first great book about China. Maybe if I could read Chinese more fluently...
I do think the best way to understand a culture and a country is to read it in fiction. If you want to understand the soul of Russia, you don't read a British or an American journalist's opinion or social investigation about Russia. You read Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Gogol, Turgenev, Chekhov and Babel. After you read novels, which can say things more truely than history, then you get a sense of a country.
I would like discuss one other point about China and literature. One of the reason that China's writers(still living in China) have not been exposed to the rest of the world, in my opinion, is the lack of great translators/writers from Chinese to English. This is an important factor in any writer's international success and something that will improve as more Westerners have access to China, Chinese, and Chinese literature. Great translators must be great writers. This is one reason why some of the most famous novels in existence are enjoyed more widely in their translation than their original. When some of the Chinese classics receive a truely wonderful translation into English, then the rest of the world will be able to appreciate them more.
| 2005-12-19 18:16:49: AD
One of the books I've read about China was _Lords of the Rim_ by Seagrave. From what I understand he has a controversial reputation. At any rate, it was riveting. Feel free to give your opinions about Seagrave!
Hessler was a lot more impressive before I went to China myself.
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| 2005-12-19 19:21:59: HOP
(China)JmeDoom said:I do think the best way to understand a culture and a country is to read it in fiction. After you read novels, which can say things more truely than history, then you get a sense of a country.
Y! I agree with u very much!
when u've read other country's novels,u'll find that a new world is open to u and even u've never picture it before. that's amazing! they guide u to find turth yourself!
And if u want to understand China more,I'll suggest u read LuXun(鲁迅).He can tell u many turth about the charicteristics of China & Chinese.
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| 2005-12-20 06:39:33: JmeDoom
(Asheville, The Sea)Haven't read Lord of the Rim yet by Seagrave. Evidently, I should. I agree about Hessler being more impressive before I went to China. It's a fine line, as a writer, writing about a culture while admitting you don't really have much of it figured out.
HOP: I haven't read a good translation of LuXun yet. Although, I have had more than one person tell me he is considered your finest writer.
Also to clarify what I said earlier about translation, I think could be even more likely a Chinese person could master English enough to write well and translate well than a Westerner doing the same back the other way
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| 2005-12-22 00:59:54: Orpheus
A good translation of LuXun: anything by Yang Hsien-Yi (杨宪益). Yang has set up a mom-and-pop shop with his British wife, the amazing Gladys Yang, and produced many great translations.
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| 2005-12-22 09:44:42: preetamrai
(Chengdu)Two books actually - Vikram Seth's From Heaven Lake and Ma Jian's Red Dust. I come from India where most people growing up in the 90s prefer to go to US or West. But once I read Seth's travels, I had to go to China. I like Ma Jian's book as it is a very good description of China in the early 80s. I also like some short stories by Jia Pingwa.
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| 2005-12-22 11:43:30: JmeDoom
(Asheville, The Sea)Orpheus and Preetamrai, Thanks for the suggestions. I have heard of Vikram Seth, now that I think about. I'll have to get my hand on a translations by the Yangs.
I also read some Orville Schell's books about China among them: Mandate of Heaven and Discos and Democracy. I don't know what to think about his writing...it seems diligent and thorough.
Again thanks for your book reco's.
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| 2005-12-26 14:50:56: afu
(Milwaukee, WI)As far as non fiction/history, I like almost everything I've read by Jonathan D. Spence. Start with The Search for Modern China if you want a good history of the last 300 years.
As for nonfiction/presonal nonfiction the best book I have read would be red dust too, but it seems pretty dated compared to what is going in China now.
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| 2005-12-27 14:32:18: dotann
(Bay Area)Some of the best WWII-era Chinese authors are now available in English translation, including Lu Xun, Lao She, but their stories are often very different from the modern day reality, even authors of our times, like Ha Jin, Jung Chang, Mo Yan, choose to focus their stories on the dim and depressing hours of Chinese history. When you look at contemporary Chinese literature there's not much spirit of courage and faith, and everything feels so very slow and supressed. Not that it's a bad thing, but there is another side of Chinese culture these contemporary writers overlooked, which is best reflect from the two classics, "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" (original Chinese version by Luo Guanzhong, a recommended translation is by Moss Roberts), and "Outlaws of the Marsh", both adapted from real histories, these books captures the classic hero vs. authority theme through exciting plots and vivid characters, they're still very influential in my generation. Even as we are getting such a huge dose of modernity right now, I still think these classic stories are worthwhile for digging into the Chinese culture. ;)
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| 2005-12-27 17:44:51: Orpheus
Dear God, dotann, these books are unreadable in English translation......
"Outlaws of the Marsh", in spite of its fire-spitting mysogeny, is sublimely written in most parts. But the sutlety, the irony and the satanic precision and succinctness are all lost in even the most competent translations. In fact, this is one novel that is a lot harder to translate than poetry.
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| 2005-12-27 17:54:51: Orpheus
For the romantic aspects of Chinese life and Chinese imagination, I would recommend the great Shen Cong-wen, whose lyrical pen captures the dangerous charm of what I call the "South-Central" China, or "Chu" (楚) region. Shen manages to tell the stories of bold river nomads, love-sick witchy women, and half-hearted executioners with a sweetness that never brims over to sentimentality.
In Chinese art and poetry, the legend goes that there has always been the tension of the more progmatic, mundane Yellow River mainstream, and the romantic, half-mad Chu influence. The latter often shocks the westerners as reminiscent of the Italians or Spaniards. Well, China is a big country.
A good start is "Imperfect Paradise: Stories by Shen Congwen", avaiable at Amazon.
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| 2005-12-27 18:10:44: Orpheus
I agree with Dotann that Ha Jin, Mo Yan, Gao xing-jian and their ilk write pretty far removed from the contemorary Chinese reality---in fact, any reality, at all. For instance, can you believe how often Gao Xing-jian's heroes gets laid on the road, during Cultural Revolution? You get imprisoned or even executed for such wanton acts of "fornication", for crying out loud! And don't get me started on Ha Jin......
Lu Xun, on the other hand, is different. His stories might not have the range to extend into contemporary reality, but his essays still lash like a whip, losing none of its forces from 70 years ago. I didn't realize this until I came to Shanghai two years ago. You still see subjects of Lu Xun's merciless caricatures running around pursuiing the lies and shams of their life, with the same shamless gusto and vulgar single-mindedness that so whetted Lu Xun's satirical appetite, as if the interceding "epochal" changes of wars and revolutions and political upheavals have made no dint at all. The same discrimination, the same mysogeny, the same narrow-mondedness, the same provncial mercantilism, the same disregard for human life and common decency. The same superstition and prejudice, only this time measured out with web log and counter hits.
So yes, Lu Xun is still as relevant as ever.
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