- Ocean of Words Army Stories by Ha Jin. Set on China's bleak northern border in the 1970s, when Russia and China were close to war, these short stories describe the life of soldiers, professional officers, and raw recruits, living in constant proximity. Ha Jin provides an unusually brilliant insight into the Chinese psyche, with its preoccupations with food, family, and political standing, and its ambivalent attitudes toward women and animals, yet also making us aware of the common humanity that we share.
- Waiting: A Novel by Ha Jin. "Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife, Shuyu." Like a fairy tale, Ha Jin's masterful novel of love and politics begins with a formula--and like a fairy tale, Waiting uses its slight, deceptively simple framework to encompass a wide range of truths about the human heart. Lin Kong is a Chinese army doctor trapped in an arranged marriage - year after year Lin asks his wife for his freedom, and year after year he returns from the provincial courthouse: still married, still unable to consummate his relationship with the woman he loves.
- Soul Mountain by Gao Xingjian. In 1983 Gao Xingjian was diagnosed with lung cancer, the disease that had killed his father. At the same time, he had been threatened with arrest for his counterrevolutionary writings and was preparing to flee Beijing for the remote regions of southwest China. Shortly before his departure, however, the condemned man got at least a partial reprieve: a second set of x-rays revealed no cancer at all. On the heels of this extraordinary redemption, he began the circuitous journey that would lead him to the sacred (and possibly mythical) mountain of Lingshan--and to this daring, historically resonant novel.
- The Republic of Wine: A Novel by Mo Yan. Set in the fictional province of Liquorland, this tall tale begins with a rumor of cannibal feasts featuring children as the main course. In response, Chinese officials send special investigator Ding Gou'er to look into the allegations. He arrives at the Mount Lao Coal Mine, where he meets the legendary Diamond Jin, a man known for an epic ability to hold his booze. Almost at once, Ding's worst fears seem to be realized when he is invited to a special dinner, given enough alcohol to stun an ox, and then served what appears to be "a golden, incredibly fragrant little boy."
- Shanghai Baby by Hui Wei. Heralding a new literary personality on the scene of the Chinese urban novel, Shanghai Baby is peopled with nimble-witted hedonists. In the eyes of traditional, mainstream society, they are moral degenerates and self-serving rebels. But from the point of view of the new commercial mainstream, they are crystal bubbles moving with the tide to better display their own beauty. Wei's book is one of the first to portray this generation of urban women, born in the 1970s, as they search for moral grounding in a country of shifting values.
- The World of Suzie Wong: A Novel by Richard Mason. Robert is the only resident of the Nam Kok hotel not renting his room by the hour when he meets Suzie at the bar. She becomes his muse and they fall in love. But even in Hong Kong, where many white expatriates have Chinese mistresses, their romance could jeopardize the things they each hold dear. Set in the mid-1950s, The World of Suzie Wong is a beautifully written time capsule of a novel.
- News from Tartary: An Epic Journey Across Central Asia by Peter Fleming. News from Tartary describes a phenomenally successful attempt that legendary adventurer Peter Fleming made to travel overland from Peking to Kashmir. The journey took seven months and covered about 3,500 miles - motivated largely by curiosity, he set out with his companion Ella Maillart across a China torn by civil war to journey through Xinjiang to British India. Beautifully written and superbly observed, this is not simply an account of a part of the world few of us will ever see, but also a marvellous insight into the last days of the Great Game, when Britain and Russia still faced each other across a Central Asia in a state of anarchy.
- Oracle Bones: A Journey Through Time in China by Peter Hessler. Hessler, who first wrote about China in his 2001 bestseller, River Town, a portrait of his Peace Corps years in Fuling, continues his conflicted affair with that complex country in a second book that reflects the maturity of time and experience. Having lived in China for a decade now, fluent in Mandarin and working as a correspondent in Beijing, Hessler displays impressive knowledge, research and personal encounters as he brings the country's peoples, foibles and history into sharp focus.
- The River at the Center of the World: A Journey Up the Yangtze, and Back in Chinese Time by Simon Winchester. British born author Simon Winchester chronicles his adventures across China along the 3,964-mile Yangtze River - employing nearly every mode of transportation, including boat, train, jeep and shoe leather, Winchester recalls his passionate exploration of the countryside while providing important and engaging historical information.
- Red Dust: A Path Through China by Ma Jian. Ma Jian offers a sharp-edged, often surprising portrait of his native land, one that takes his readers into corners that few non-Chinese travelers have seen. As he recounts in his memoir, over a period of three years he wandered into the western desert, through the mountains of Shaanxi, down the steamy southern coast, and, eventually, to Tibet. Along the way he slipped by inquisitive police agents, ate dodgy meals, fell in love a time or two, and learned much about his country--more than he bargained on, for, as he writes, "I am exhausted. China is too old, its roots too deep. I feel dirty from the delving."
- The Search for Modern China by Jonathan D. Spence. Spence advocates democracy in China and presents contemporary views of its oppressive history, including Chiang Kai-Shek's fascist supporters and the bloodbath known as the Cultural Revolution. The 200+ photographs and illustrations, many in color and previously unpublished, include historical notes that add understanding to the art and the stories illustrated. The text is written in an informative manner that will appeal to students; their lack of knowledge of Chinese history is forstalled by the comprehensive glossary that explains phrases, people, and events.
- The Last Emperor (1987) Bernardo Bertolucci's film won nine Academy Awards, unexpectedly sweeping every category in which it was nominated. Yet the power and scope of the film was, and remains, undeniable: the life of Emperor Pu Yi, who took the throne at age three, in 1908, before witnessing decades of cultural and political upheaval, within and without the walls of the Forbidden City.
- Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Two master warriors (Chow Yun Fat and Michelle Yeoh) are faced with their greatest challenge when the treasured Green Destiny sword is stolen. A young aristocrat (Zhang Ziyi) prepares for an arranged marriage, but soon reveals her superior fighting talents and her deeply romantic past. As each warrior battles for justice, they come face to face with their worst enemy - and the inescapable, enduring power of love.
- The Forbidden Kingdom (2008) Getting martial-arts superstars Jet Li and Jackie Chan together in the same action film is like a fantasy come true. Chan doesn't disappoint as Lu Yan, a drunken immortal in ancient China who mentors a modern-day American kid, Jason (Michael Angarano), the latter having slipped into the past while in possession of a magical staff that belongs to the imprisoned Monkey King (Li). In order to get back to his own time and help an old friend wounded by thugs, Jason accompanies Lu Yan and a lovely warrior, Golden Sparrow (Liu Yifei), on a journey to return the staff.
- Curse of the Golden Flower (2006) Set in the lavish and breathtakingly colorful world hidden from the eyes of mere mortals behind the walls of the Forbidden City, a tale of a royal family divided against itself builds to a mythic climax as lines are crossed, trust is betrayed, and family blood is spilled in the quest for redemption and revenge. Starring Chow Yun Fat of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as the embattled Emperor and Gong Li of Memoirs of a Geisha as his poisoned Empress, Curse of the Golden Flower grants you entry into a dazzling and spectacular world of betrayal, vengeance and passion that will change the way you think of martial arts forever.
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