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On this day, Gao Xingjian was born in 1940

Happy birthday to Nobel laureate Gao Xingjian, a painter, novelist, essayist, and more. Below, read about two essay collections Gao published with Cambria—in which he discusses aesthetics, the climate crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic—and a study of his original artistry: Called “a tour de force” and “a most valuable collection of writings and public statements,” Calling for a New Renaissance...

Book Excerpt: “Museum of Consumption” by Graciela Montaldo

Museum of Consumption: The Archives of Mass Culture in Argentina (1880–1930) by Graciela Montaldo examines the emergence of mass culture and the tensions of this modern culture subject to the pressures of the market and politics. The book also traces the emergence of a cultural scene that constructed a frontier between elite and mass cultures during the modernization process.  This...

English Translation of Liu Zhenyun’s Bestseller “Children of the Melon Eating Age” 吃瓜时代的儿女们

In 2017 Paper Republic selected Liu Zhenyun’s Chi gua shidai de ernumen 吃瓜时代的儿女们 as one of the best books in Chinese, noting: Following his previous award-winning books such as I Did Not Kill My Husband and A Word is Worth Ten Thousand Words, Liu Zhenyun’s new book continues his typical sick humour and absurdism. The lives of four unrelated strangers turn out to...

Book Excerpt from Mo Yan Speaks

Nobel Laureate Mo Yan, whose name literally means “don’t speak,” is renowned for his fiction, which includes The Garlic Ballads; Red Sorghum; Shifu, You’ll Do Anything for a Laugh; Life and Death Are Wearing Me Out; The Republic of Wine; and Big Breasts and Wide Hips (all translated into English by Professor Howard Goldblatt). Mo Yan’s fiction has captivated a global audience for years, and his speeches...

Jin Yong (1924–2018): Legend in Chinese Martial Arts Fiction and Modern Chinese Literary History

Today we mourn the passing of Jin Yong (Louis Cha) who was well loved for his wuxia novels, among his many other accomplishments. What made Jin Yong such a legend? As Ann Huss and Jianmei noted in The Jin Yong Phenomenon, “Jin Yong writes in what has been referred to by readers and critics as ‘the common language of Chinese...

Cambria Press Publication Review: Contents Tourism in Japan

Congratulations to Philip Seaton (Tokyo University), Takayoshi Yamamura (Hokkaido University), Akiko Sugawa-Shimada (Yokohama National University), and Kyungjae Jang (Hokkaido University) on the outstanding review of their book, Contents Tourism in Japan: Pilgrimages to “Sacred Sites” of Popular Culture, in the journal Tourist Studies. The review praises the book, which includes 100 color images, noting that: This is rich analysis. It...

Cambria Press Author Interview with Professor Christopher Rea

Before Crazy Rich Asians, there were the Chinese celebrities in the 1930’s. In his latest book Imperfect Understanding: Intimate Portraits of Modern Chinese Celebrities, Professor Christopher Rea (University of British Columbia) takes us into the world of Chinese elites and what they had to say about each other. Louise Edwards, Scientia Professor and Deputy Head of the School of Humanities...

Cambria Press Book Launch at iPreciation with Mabel Lee, Shen Jiawei, and Victor Mair

The Cambria Press double book launch at iPreciation on July 14, 2018,  was a great success! The audience was treated not only to fascinating talks by celebrity artist Shen Jiawei and Professor Mabel Lee about their  books Painting History: China’s Revolution in a Global Context and Gao Xingjian and Transmedia Aesthetics  but also the introductory speech by distinguished guest of honor Professor Victor Mair and...

Meet Mabel Lee, Shen Jiawei, and Victor Mair at the double book launch

The double book launch for Mabel Lee and Shen Jiawei just got even more exciting! Attendees will also get to meet world-renowned Sinologist Victor H. Mair (University of Pennsylvania), general editor of the Cambria Sinophone World Series. Register now for the event! The double book launch for Painting History: China’s Revolution in a Global Context and Gao Xingjian and Transmedia Aesthetics will be...

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