With the care that only independent publishers can achieve, one sometimes finds the most unique publications. Editorial Popular has in its Gazes collection. LITERATURE OF THE XXI CENTURY a mission towards the informative from the passionate. This is the only way to understand the detail of the selection and the suggestiveness of the set. Objective: to present the widest and most exquisite sample of the current chinese literature.
Because yes, it seems true that the Chinese cultural space currently does not find the greatest claims in its literary aspect. And yet, it is all a matter of knowing how to search and endeavoring to show the world the genius that can be overlooked, simply by concentrating the focus on currents, trends or desires (if it does not already come to be all the same by work and grace of marketing).
In more specific creative spaces things change, because guys like Liu Cixin break it in the most current science fiction. And surely in other genres, some narratives made in China are also going through good times. But considering a more ambitious literature in terms of reflecting our reality, not so many current Chinese writers are absolute references.
So in order not to reduce the plane or make us shortsighted, a collection like Miradas manages precisely to get us out of limitations and provide a multitude of glimpses of the world and of the present from that wonderful range of the intrahistorical. That if, in addition, the matter takes on the dimension of a great puzzle or mosaic made up of selected Chinese authors, the idea overflows with originality.
As I initially pointed out, only an independent publisher compensates all the necessary dedication, light years away from the mere immediate effect of the bestseller. Because making literary jewels goes from something else. We find 4 books in "stories" format that comprise the grouping of literary resources and summarize the new contemporary way of writing Chinese authors for the Spanish public.
Each book contains a significant story by each author (formed by 8-12 authors per book) selected to represent an approach to contemporary Chinese literature. Some of these authors have already been translated into other languages, especially English, French, Spanish... although they are not yet widely distributed among readers.
In it we find traditional stories, which allude to the daily life of people, both in the countryside and in the city; fantastic stories that take advantage of avant-garde and innovative narrative techniques; intimate literature with the particularity of the sensitive and delicate character of the ancient Chinese culture...
The supposed complexity of Chinese literature for the West has been nuanced over the years, the opening to the West by the Asian giant and the interest and promotion of said opening by the country's cultural authorities. The West, too, has renewed this interest, which had languished during a bygone era. Thus, reading these stories that we present can provoke in the western reader amazement and interest at the same time, discovering an exciting world that is already diverse and changing at the same time.
In some of the stories, even with very diverse themes and very different treatments, some common denominator can be perceived, such as the difficulties of family life, old age, respect for traditions, rural life...
In some of the stories you can appreciate the efforts of the authors to immerse themselves in a more modern world and also the practice of newer narrative techniques.
For the configuration of this volume, a significant story by each author has been chosen, which is accompanied by a brief biography of each of them. Some have been awarded the most prestigious prizes in China, and have been translated into other languages.
Some of the Authors of the MIRADAS collection and their stories:
- Tie Ning: Meimei had never seen the mountains
- Cao Wenxuan: The Banner of Huiwa
- Bi Feiyu: Family Matters
- Mai Jia: Growing Up
- Liu Yudong: Accompanying Aunt Ma Lan's cart
- Wei Wei: Older Sister
- Zhang Huiwen: After the storm
- Han Song: Finished
- Han Dong: The Cry of the Deer