Book cover for Heng Ping Shu Zhi Photo: Courtesy of Huazhong University of Science & Technology Press

New book decodes historical stories behind Chinese characters 

Heng Ping Shu Zhi (Lit: Vertical and horizontal strokes) is a new book published in February that tells the story about the cultural history of hanzi, or Chinese characters. The book comes from Chinese film director Liu Junwei, who directed the 2011 documentary Five Thousand Years of Chinese Characters. 

Unlike the documentary, which told a visual story about 32 representative Chinese characters, the book includes more historical details such as the formation of a unified Chinese writing system during the time of Emperor Qinshihuang, the relationships between Chinese characters and Confucian philosophy, and also a question posed to the future: How will Chinese characters develop in the digital computing age? 

The book also includes interesting prefaces written by cultural figures such as Ma Weidu, Xu Jialu and Mai Tianshu. 

Mai guides readers in an attempt to understand Chinese characters in context whereas Xu delves into people's understanding of Chinese characters as a culture. 


Essay collection by 'Northeast story' writer Shuang Xuetao 

After making a name for himself with his novelette Moses on the Plain, writer Shuang Xuetao has recently published a new book The Black Sheep Among White Sheep. 

The new book is Shuang's first collection of essays. Besides his own works, Shuang also discusses nine essays that he selected from amateur writers. 

Being an art film moviegoer himself, in the second and third sections, Shuang revealed his passion over filming and explored the relationship between novels and films and also his other jottings. 

The writer has always been keen about stories of the mundane. Born in Shenyang, Northeast ­China's Liaoning Province, his ­Moses on the Plain depicts a suspense story involving an ordinary taxi driver living in Northeast China. Including details about local traditions and local lifestyles, the book won Shuang the title of "Northeast story" writer. 

The novel was adapted into the film Fire on the Plain released in 2021. Directed by Diao Yinan, the film has been shortlisted for international awards such as the San Sebastian Festival.