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One for the Road - China: Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
As a sidebar to this month's Chinese Buffet series, throughout August, One for the Road will highlight travel guides, reference books and other recommended reads related to life or travel in China.Did I mention that I read an entire book while on the train from Beijing to Shanghai? While browsing at the Foreign Language Bookstore on in Beijing, I came across a copy of Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. Since my backpack was already overloaded with guidebooks, I really had no business buying another book, but this tiny paperback was whispering to me. After I learned that the plot revolved around a secret trunk of forbidden books, I knew I had to have it.
The tale begins in the summer of 1968, when two boys, both sons of doctors, are sent to a "re-education camp" during the height of Mao's Cultural Revolution. The story revolves around their friendship, the beautiful little seamstress and a mysterious collection of Western classics, hidden in a suitcase in the home of their friend "Four Eyes". Anyone with a passion for literature will probably find this historical novel to be a quick and enjoyable read. (It's perfect reading material for an all day train trip through China too!) Written by Dai Sijie, a Chinese filmmaker who has lived in France since 1984, a movie version of the book opened the Cannes Film Festival in 2002.
Filed under: Asia, China, Books, One for the Road, Chinese Buffet
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jane Corrou Aug 17th 2007 11:25AM
Hi Kelly!
Love your impressions--another side of China, eh!!
Can't wait to get them home--a week from today!
Going to the races today-- nice balmy day!
Hope Down Under is going smoothly! We'd love to get back there!
Hugs!
J+J