Play The 'Guess That Quote' Game The Good Women of China Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother Journalist, Author, & Expert on Chinese Women and Daughters Interested in booking Xinran to speak at your next event? Contact Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau. Life of Women in China Why China Is Not Ready To Take Over The World Chinese Secret Mothers And Their Unforgotten Daughters -- A War Of Sex Selection In Chinese Culture Mind Body & Spirit Thomas N. Bradbury & Benjamin R. Karney Jessica Buchanan & Erik Landemalm Judy Melinek, M.D. & T.J. Mitchell Carrie and Alton Barron Dr. Joseph Cardillo, Ph.D. Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf Dr. Howard E. Wasdin Postwar 20th Century History, From C 1945 To C 2000 21st Century History: From C 2000 - Social & Cultural History Buy Me the Sky : The Remarkable Truth of China's One-Child Generations With journalistic acumen and a novelist's flair, Xinran tells the remarkable stories of men and women born in China after 1979 - the recent generations raised under China's single-child policy.
At a time when the country continues to transform at the speed of light, these generations of precious 'one and onlies' are burdened with expectation, yet have often been brought up without any sense of responsibility. Within their families, they are revered as 'little emperors' and 'suns', although such cosseting can come at a high price: isolation, confusion and an inability to deal with life's challenges. From the businessman's son unable to pack his own suitcase, to the PhD student who pulled herself out of extreme rural poverty, Xinran shows how these generations embody the hopes and fears of a great nation at a time of unprecedented change. It is a time of fragmentation, heart-breaking and inspiring in equal measure, in which capitalism vies with communism, the city with the countryside and Western opportunity with Eastern tradition. Through the fascinating stories of these only children, we catch a startling glimpse of the emerging face of China.show more Xinran was born in Beijing in 1958 and was a successful journalist and radio presenter in China.
In 1997 she moved to London, where she began work on her seminal book about Chinese women's lives, The Good Women of China. Since then she has written a regular column for the Guardian; appeared frequently on radio and TV and has published the acclaimed Sky Burial; the novel Miss Chopsticks; the groundbreaking book of oral history China Witness; a book of her Guardian columns called What the Chinese Don't Eat and Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother, about mothers and their lost daughters. She lives in London but travels regularly to China.show more "Unforgettable insights into the past and present of Chinese women's lives" The Times, The Good Women of China "Extraordinary...told with generosity and warmth by a brilliant storyteller " -- Hilary Spurling Financial Times, Message From An Unknown Chinese Mother "One would have to have a heart of stone not to be moved" Economist, Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother "Extraordinary and eye-opening" Jon Snow, The Good Women of China "An absorbing, often startling, always persuasive exploration of contemporary China" Spectatorshow more
"Unforgettable insights into the past and present of Chinese women's lives" The Times, The Good Women of Chinashow more The Good Women of China : Hidden Voices For eight groundbreaking years, Xinran presented a radio programme in China during which she invited women to call in and talk about themselves. Broadcast every evening, Words on the Night Breeze became famous through the country for its unflinching portrayal of what it meant to be a woman in modern China. Centuries of obedience to their fathers, husbands and sons, followed by years of political turmoil had made women terrified of talking openly about their feelings. Xinran won their trust and, through her compassion and ability to listen, became the first woman to hear their true stories. This unforgettable book is the story of how Xinran negotiated the minefield of restrictions imposed on Chinese journalists to reach out to women across the country. Through the vivid intimacy of her writing, the women's voices confide in the reader, sharing their deepest secrets for the first time.
Their stories changed Xinran's understanding of China forever. Her book will reveal the lives of Chinese women to the West as never before.show more One morning, Xinran Xue, the presenter and producer of a women's radio programme in Communist China, received a letter reading: 'I'm sorry, I can't go on living. You shouldn't have saved me.... Remembering is too painful. The letter was written by a 16-year-old girl to her parents. She had been raped by soldiers and left in a ditch. Later she killed herself in hospital and her father died of a heart attack from the shock. This is just one of many stories and letters sent to Xinran for her radio show, 'Words on a Night Breeze', which she had set up to help the abused girls and women of China. The show was instantly and enormously popular; Xinran had many followers among the women of China. However, even though she was aware of the suffering caused by the oppressive regime, she was unprepared for what she heard and read. This book is an account of her experiences.
For many of the women who contacted her, the programme was a lifeline - their only opportunity to communicate with someone who understood their problems. Women were unable to speak freely about their feelings - or indeed to express themselves at all - as they had for so long been dominated by their fathers, husbands and sons, who punished them when they 'transgressed'. This misogyny was reinforced by a tyrannical government that regarded women as people of no importance. Despite the horrors of their lives, the love, compassion and fighting spirit of the women shine through. This is an unforgettable book with many distressing stories and some heartwarming ones. Xinran risked censure, even prison, for telling their stories. They changed her view of China and now they will change ours. "These are stories that must be read" Amy Tan "This is a book from deep in the heart of China. As shocking as it is revealing... An extraordinary and eye-opening read" Jon Snow "Xinran's "Good Women of China" are all strong, strikingly resourceful characters who offer unforgettable insights into the past and present of Chinese women's lives" The Times "The Good Women of China demands attention" Observer "[Xinran] writes compassionately but unsentimentally, dramatising the stories like gripping fiction" Daily Mailshow more