Q & A with Bruce Humes, Translator of Eco-fiction Novel “Last Quarter of the Moon”

Thomas Bird: You translated Chi Zijian’s The Last Quarter of the Moon in 2012. It has now been rebranded and newly launched as part of the Vintage Earth series. How do you feel about it 10 years on? Bruce Humes: I feel the book is more relevant than ever. On the one hand, it highlights the challenges that face … Continue reading Q & A with Bruce Humes, Translator of Eco-fiction Novel “Last Quarter of the Moon”

Xinjiang-based Novel: Excerpt from Patigül’s “Bloodline”

   An excerpt from Bloodline , a novel by Uyghur author Patigül set in Xinjiang (《百年血脉》帕蒂古丽 著) Translated from the Chinese by Natascha Bruce Edited by Bruce Humes Growing Up In Da’nanpo (大南坡上的日子) We lived southeast of Da’nanpo, deep in the desert and on top of a steep slope, which meant all routes away from the … Continue reading Xinjiang-based Novel: Excerpt from Patigül’s “Bloodline”

Xinjiang: Big Data, Wifi Sniffers & Big Brother

In China: Big Data Fuels Crackdown in Minority Region, Human Rights Watch reports on how hi-tech is being used to systematically monitor citizens' behavior in Xinjiang, one of the PRC's most multiethnic regions: Since August 2016, the Xinjiang Bureau of Public Security has posted procurement notices confirming the establishment of the “Integrated Joint Operations Platform” (IJOP, … Continue reading Xinjiang: Big Data, Wifi Sniffers & Big Brother

The Xinjiang Gold Rush, Uyghur Scavengers and a Kind of Freedom

In a discussion of Anna Lowenhaupt Tsing’s The Mushroom at the End of the World — about Southeast Asian refugee immigrants and white Vietnam War vets picking mushrooms in Oregon — Darren Byler is struck by the way the mushroom pickers speak of freedom. He writes: In a corner of China, several thousand kilometers from … Continue reading The Xinjiang Gold Rush, Uyghur Scavengers and a Kind of Freedom

Alat Asem’s 《时间悄悄的嘴脸》: Guide to Related Links

 Alat Asem’s Confessions of a Jade Lord 《时间悄悄的嘴脸》阿拉提·阿斯木 著 Translated by Bruce Humes and Jun Liu Author's Background 阿拉提·阿斯木_百度百科 Literary Bio Présentation: Alat Asem (en français) Book Reviews Turkey's Sabah: A Gem of Uyghur Literature Academic Papers 翟晓甜 张治安:阿拉提·阿斯木的超越与创新——读《时间悄悄的嘴脸》  Renditions of the Novel Chinese original: 《时间悄悄的嘴脸》  Excerpt: Rechristening a High-rise (Chapter 19) The Translation Process  Co-translating … Continue reading Alat Asem’s 《时间悄悄的嘴脸》: Guide to Related Links

Quick Guide to China’s Contemporary Ethnic-themed Literature in Translation

Updated: May 3, 2018 (No plans to further update) Quick Guide to China’s Contemporary  Ethnic-themed Literature in Translation I’m often too busy to immediately write a well-researched post about contemporary “ethnic-themed” fiction that has been translated and published in a foreign tongue. This is a loose category (民族题材文学) that includes stories — regardless of the … Continue reading Quick Guide to China’s Contemporary Ethnic-themed Literature in Translation

Excerpt: Hong Ke’s Xinjiang novel, “Urho”

Hong Ke's novel, Urho (乌尔禾, 红柯著), is set during the 1960s in the Zungharian Basin at the edge of the Gurbantünggüt Desert. This remote and rugged area of Xinjiang was once a favored hunting ground for the Mongol Khans when they ruled Cathay. A Han soldier back from the Korean front --- dubbed “Hailibu” by … Continue reading Excerpt: Hong Ke’s Xinjiang novel, “Urho”

Wang Gang’s “Ingilizce” : Intriguing look at the Cultural Revolution for Turkish Readers

As China’s fiction “exports” pick up, it will be interesting to watch which novels and themes win an Exit Permit to foreign lands, and how they are received there. Take Wang Gang’s 《英格力士》, for instance.  This semi-autobiographical novel set in Xinjiang during the Cultural Revolution was snapped up by Penguin, and rendered in English by … Continue reading Wang Gang’s “Ingilizce” : Intriguing look at the Cultural Revolution for Turkish Readers

Book Review: “English” by Wang Gang, or Growing up Han in Fictional Xinjiang

“Among the Emperor Qianlong’s trophies from his conquest of Xinjiang was a girl called Iparhan. She was a beautiful Kashgari whose body was said to give off an intoxicating scent without any help from ointments…the abduction of Iparhan became for the Chinese a symbol of the annexation of the western lands which they had twice … Continue reading Book Review: “English” by Wang Gang, or Growing up Han in Fictional Xinjiang