On Oct 21, the New York Times ran an interesting article entitled China Turns to Online Courses, and Mao, in Pursuit of Soft Power. Sure enough, Xinhua's Cankao Xiaoxi picked it up and translated it for the masses just two days later, with an enhanced title that focuses on capturing foreign eyeballs (中文原文): 中国借网络课程吸引外国受众 … Continue reading China’s Online Courses for the World: Tweaking International Media Coverage for Chinese Eyes
Booming Sales of Alexievich’s Works: State Media Attributes them to China’s “Nobel Complex”
Amazon China’s sales of new Nobel Laureate Svetlana Alexievich’s works in soared from nowhere to occupy the Number 20 ranking in less than 24 hours after she was awarded the prestigious prize, reports the Xi’an Evening News at Chinanews.com (作品销量). Nothing like this jump occurred when China’s own Mo Yan was honored with the same … Continue reading Booming Sales of Alexievich’s Works: State Media Attributes them to China’s “Nobel Complex”
Xi Jinping’s “Little Red Book” for Art Workers of the Nation
What a relief! Now we know that even President Xi Jinping’s speeches must be finely airbrushed before they’re ready for mass consumption. In A Year After Xi’s Landmark Speech on the Arts, Some Things Get Left Out, we learn that his infamous October 2014 closed-door speech to Art Workers of the Nation has finally been released … Continue reading Xi Jinping’s “Little Red Book” for Art Workers of the Nation
Beijing Oct 19-20 Event: First Int’l Symposium on Uyghur Folk Dastan (داستان) in China
Event: First Int’l Symposium on Uyghur Folk Dastan in China (首届中国维吾尔族民间达斯坦国际学术研讨会) Venue: 北京市海淀区三里河路7号 新疆维吾尔自治区政府驻京办事处1号楼 Sponsors: CASS Institute of Ethnic Literature (中国社会科学院民族文学研究所), Xinjiang Federation of Literary and Art Circles (新疆维吾尔自治区文学艺术界联) Organizer: Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Folklore Association (新疆维吾尔自治区民间文艺家协会) Attendees: 50 dastan ( داستان , 达斯坦, destanı) scholars from China, Japan, Korea, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey Background reading: 互动百科：达斯坦 试论维吾尔民间达斯坦《玉素甫—艾赫麦德》的流传现状 … Continue reading Beijing Oct 19-20 Event: First Int’l Symposium on Uyghur Folk Dastan (داستان) in China
Frankfurt Book Fair 2015: China’s Culture of Censorship in the Limelight
Oct 17 Update 纽约时报中文网：美国 12 家出版商集体对中国审查说不 ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ Oct 16 2015 In Phil Collins and Ai Weiwei Make Waves at Frankfurt Book Fair, we learn that China’s repugnant censorship practices are generating some real pushback: The fair also saw China accepted as the newest member of the International Publishers Association – a … Continue reading Frankfurt Book Fair 2015: China’s Culture of Censorship in the Limelight
Svetlana Alexievich, Nobel Laureate: China Media’s Initial Reactions
Oct 20 Update Booming Sales of Alexievich's Works: State Media Attributes them to China's "Nobel Complex" Oct 12 Update Man Asian Literary Prize winner Bi Feiyu praises Alexievich and her brand of non-fiction in an interview with Yangzi Evening News: 毕飞宇：今年的诺奖不是一个冷门 . But he does not cite any current practitioners of oral history or investigative journalism … Continue reading Svetlana Alexievich, Nobel Laureate: China Media’s Initial Reactions
Excerpt of the Week: The Nightjar at Dusk (黄昏夜莺)
So now the escapee nightjar and I were conspirators. I had to stay patient and play my part in its plot. We stood a while longer, though of course the urgent call did not sound. But the boy stood there motionless, gazing up at the spot where the bird had once perched. He already had … Continue reading Excerpt of the Week: The Nightjar at Dusk (黄昏夜莺)
Pathlight Spring 2015: A Handful of Pieces by Mongolian and Xinjiang-based Writers
The new issue of Pathlight (Spring 2015) Chinese literature in translation is out. Its theme is Nature, and you can download the PDF for free here.A quick look at the contents reveals four pieces that fall at least loosely into the "ethnic-themed" fiction category:Two pieces by Mongolian writers:Wolves Walk Atwain (p 18) Deng Yiguang (邓一光) … Continue reading Pathlight Spring 2015: A Handful of Pieces by Mongolian and Xinjiang-based Writers
Profile: Xinjiang-based Uyghur Writer Perhat Tursun
In Meet China’s Salman Rushdie, Foreign Policy’s Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian profiles Xinjiang's controversial Uyghur writer Perhat Tursun (پەرھات تۇرسۇن, 帕尔哈提·吐尔逊): Perhat is the author of The Art of Suicide [自杀的艺术], a novel decried as anti-Islamic that in 1999 set off a religious firestorm among Uighurs, the largely Muslim, Turkic minority concentrated in the nominally autonomous Chinese … Continue reading Profile: Xinjiang-based Uyghur Writer Perhat Tursun
1982-2015 Mao Dun Prize: 43 Winners — But which Ones Truly Benefited Sales-wise?
Over the last few years, the veil has been partially lifted on what has been China’s most coveted literary prize for the novel, the Mao Dun Literature Prize, which is awarded just once every four years. You can bone up on the scandals behind this and other awards here if you like. The Beijing Daily … Continue reading 1982-2015 Mao Dun Prize: 43 Winners — But which Ones Truly Benefited Sales-wise?
Altaic Storytelling 