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The write stuff
By Hu Bei Source:Global Times Published: 2013-2-28 17:18:01
The 2013 Shanghai International Literary Festival starts today at M on the Bund (7/F, 5 Zhongshandongyi Road) and lasts until March 17.
And over the next three weeks, 85 writers from more than 20 countries and regions will appear at various literary events, including lectures, readings, debates, discussions and workshops.
Michelle Garnaut, manager of M on the Bund, told the Global Times that from the outset in 2003 the festival has been characterized by its internationalism.
"And, as in previous years, the main criterion for us is always the works. It doesn't matter if the author is famous or a first-timer, it's the quality of the writing that counts," she said.
This year, two writers from Turkey and Mexico will attend the festival for their first time with their well-known works.
Christopher Doyle
The cover of Five Star Billionaire
Culture and mythology
Baris Mustecaplioglu (March 3, 4 pm) from Turkey is a popular fantasy author. Combining Western and Eastern cultures and mythologies in an inspired, entertaining way he has created a series of fantasy stories, Legends of Perg consisting of five novels which, to date, have been released in Bulgaria, Serbia and China and will soon be published in Germany.
F.G. Haghenbeck (March 9, 3 pm) is a Mexican novelist, historian and comic book writer. Before becoming a full-time writer, he worked as a museum architect and a television producer. The Secret Book of Frida Kahlo is a fictional "biography" of the iconic Mexican painter and features magical realism and recipes among its themes. It is his fourth novel and has been translated into 10 languages, including Chinese.
Tina Kanagaratnam, co-organizer of the festival, also told the Global Times that, "this year, we have Asian authors who are making a big splash on the international literary scene such as the Man Asian Prize winner Shin Kyung-sook, and the Man Booker Prize shortlisted Jeet Thayil."
Kyung-sook (March 16, 1 pm) is a South Korean writer who became the first Korean, and the first woman, to win the Man Asian Literary Prize (an annual literary award given to the best novel by an Asian writer, written in English or translated in English) in 2012 for Please Look After Mom. This 2009 novel is about a missing mother and her family, and has been adapted into a play and a musical.
Thayil (March 16, 5 pm) from India, is a poet, novelist and musician. His first novel, Narcopolis, was shortlisted for the 2012 Man Booker Prize (an annual award for the best novel written in English by a citizen of the Commonwealth of Nations, Ireland, or Zimbabwe).
According to the author Narcopolis draws on his own experiences as a drug addict, and he told the Daily Express that the tale could be read as "the lost 20 years of my life."
Another highlight of the festival is the overseas writers who discuss China in their work.
"This is one of our traditions," said Kanagaratnam. "Every year, we have a large number of invitees who write about China, whether they are Chinese themselves or from abroad. Our audiences are interested in the place in which they live, and many are unable to access books in Chinese. Therefore, China scholars and many of our authors who have studied and written about different aspects of China are of great interest. "
This year such authors include Geremie R. Barmé (March 16, 12 am) and Christopher Doyle (March 10, 5 pm) from Australia, James Fallows (March 10, 3 pm) from the US, Sarah Brennan (March 9, 10 am) from Ireland, Matthew Polly (March 12, 7 pm) from the US, and Aw Ta-Shi (March 17, 12 pm) from Malaysia.
Culture and mythology
Baris Mustecaplioglu (March 3, 4 pm) from Turkey is a popular fantasy author. Combining Western and Eastern cultures and mythologies in an inspired, entertaining way he has created a series of fantasy stories, Legends of Perg consisting of five novels which, to date, have been released in Bulgaria, Serbia and China and will soon be published in Germany.
F.G. Haghenbeck (March 9, 3 pm) is a Mexican novelist, historian and comic book writer. Before becoming a full-time writer, he worked as a museum architect and a television producer. The Secret Book of Frida Kahlo is a fictional "biography" of the iconic Mexican painter and features magical realism and recipes among its themes. It is his fourth novel and has been translated into 10 languages, including Chinese.
Tina Kanagaratnam, co-organizer of the festival, also told the Global Times that, "this year, we have Asian authors who are making a big splash on the international literary scene such as the Man Asian Prize winner Shin Kyung-sook, and the Man Booker Prize shortlisted Jeet Thayil."
Kyung-sook (March 16, 1 pm) is a South Korean writer who became the first Korean, and the first woman, to win the Man Asian Literary Prize (an annual literary award given to the best novel by an Asian writer, written in English or translated in English) in 2012 for Please Look After Mom. This 2009 novel is about a missing mother and her family, and has been adapted into a play and a musical.
Thayil (March 16, 5 pm) from India, is a poet, novelist and musician. His first novel, Narcopolis, was shortlisted for the 2012 Man Booker Prize (an annual award for the best novel written in English by a citizen of the Commonwealth of Nations, Ireland, or Zimbabwe).
According to the author Narcopolis draws on his own experiences as a drug addict, and he told the Daily Express that the tale could be read as "the lost 20 years of my life."
Another highlight of the festival is the overseas writers who discuss China in their work.
"This is one of our traditions," said Kanagaratnam. "Every year, we have a large number of invitees who write about China, whether they are Chinese themselves or from abroad. Our audiences are interested in the place in which they live, and many are unable to access books in Chinese. Therefore, China scholars and many of our authors who have studied and written about different aspects of China are of great interest. "
This year such authors include Geremie R. Barmé (March 16, 12 am) and Christopher Doyle (March 10, 5 pm) from Australia, James Fallows (March 10, 3 pm) from the US, Sarah Brennan (March 9, 10 am) from Ireland, Matthew Polly (March 12, 7 pm) from the US, and Aw Ta-Shi (March 17, 12 pm) from Malaysia.
Anne Spudvilas
Shaolin disciple
Doyle is an award-winning cinematographer who has worked alongside renowned Chinese directors including Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, Zhang Yuan and most notably Wong Kar-wai with whom he has collaborated on six films.
Polly describes his experiences of China's famous Shaolin Temple. He spent two years studying kung fu at the temple in Henan Province, becoming the first American to be accepted as a Shaolin "disciple."
Aw Ta-Shi's latest novel, Five Star Billionaire, charts the overlapping lives of migrant Malaysian workers who are trying to forge lives for themselves in the sprawling metropolis of Shanghai.
And at 7 pm on March 15, there will be a seminar about a newly released book Unsavory Elements which is a collection of true stories about China commissioned from 28 renowned Western writers.
Shaolin disciple
Doyle is an award-winning cinematographer who has worked alongside renowned Chinese directors including Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, Zhang Yuan and most notably Wong Kar-wai with whom he has collaborated on six films.
Polly describes his experiences of China's famous Shaolin Temple. He spent two years studying kung fu at the temple in Henan Province, becoming the first American to be accepted as a Shaolin "disciple."
Aw Ta-Shi's latest novel, Five Star Billionaire, charts the overlapping lives of migrant Malaysian workers who are trying to forge lives for themselves in the sprawling metropolis of Shanghai.
And at 7 pm on March 15, there will be a seminar about a newly released book Unsavory Elements which is a collection of true stories about China commissioned from 28 renowned Western writers.
Posted in: Metro Shanghai