Contemporary Chinese Literature and Culture: Readings and Discussion

Rui Li has published four novels, three essay collections, and four story collections. Many of these works have been translated into Swedish, English, French, Japanese, German, Dutch, and other languages. He is best known for a series of stories published under the title Houtu (Thick Earth), which won the China Times Literary Prize. His most recent novel is Yingcheng gushi (Tale of Silver City) and an eight-volume Dongyue Wenku: Li Rui Collection. Jiang Yun's first published story, "Wo de liangge nuer" (My Two Daughters), marked the beginning of the Wound Literature movement in Shanxi, China. Since then, Ms. Jiang has published four story collections, and her five novels include Shanshuo zai nide zhitou (Shining on the Top of Your Tree) and Wo de leilu (My Interior Land). Chuan Xi has published four collections of poems, most recently Water Stains, in addition to a play and translations. His poetry has been widely anthologized and translated into more than ten languages. Among his many prizes is the prestigious Lu Xun Prize for literature in 2001. Jinghui Meng is one of the foremost avant-garde playwrights in China whose productions have included The Rhinoceros in Love, Scandals from One Street, and Beckett's Waiting for Godot, adapted for Chinese. His latest film is Chicken Poets. They are all visiting writers from the International Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa.