Xinran Xue's Books

The Promise

Love and Loss in Modern China

By: Xinran Xue

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

The Promise

Love and Loss in Modern China

By: Xinran Xue

At the start of the twentieth century in China, the Hans were married in an elaborate ceremony before they were even born. While their future was arranged by their families, this couple had much to be grateful for. Not only did they come from similar backgrounds – and as such were recognized as a good match - they also had a shared passion in their deep love of ancient Chinese poetry. They went on to have nine children and chose colours portrayed in some of their favourite poems as nicknames for them - Red, Cyan, Orange, Yellow, Green, Ginger, Violet, Blue and Rainbow. Fate, and the sweep of twentieth century history would later divide these children into three groups: three went to America or Hong Kong to protect the family line from the communists; three were married to revolutionaries having come of age as China turned red; while three suffered tragic early deaths. With her trademark wisdom and warmth, Xinran describes the lives and loves of this extraordinary family over four generations. What emerges is not only a moving, beautifully-written and engaging story of four people and their lives, but a crucial portrait of social change in China. Xinran begins with the magic and tragedy of one young couples wedding night in 1950, and goes on to tell personal experiences of loss, grief and hardship through China's extraordinary century. In doing so she tells a bigger story – how traditional Chinese values have been slowly eroded by the tide of modernity and how their outlooks on love, and the choices they've made in life, have been all been affected by the great upheavals of Chinese history. A spell-binding and magical narrative, this is the story of modern China through the people who lived through it, and the story of their love and loss.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

290

Publisher

Bloomsbury Publishing

Published Date

ISBN 10

1786725347

ISBN 13

9781786725349

The Promise

Love and Loss in Modern China

By: Xinran Xue

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

The Promise

Love and Loss in Modern China

By: Xinran Xue

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

290

Publisher

Bloomsbury Publishing

Published Date

ISBN 10

1786725347

ISBN 13

9781786725349

The Book of Secrets

A Personal History of Betrayal in Red China

By: Xinran Xue

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

The Book of Secrets

A Personal History of Betrayal in Red China

By: Xinran Xue

The story of a family in modern China with a history of deceit, betrayal and political intrigue, and the communist party's long shadow over them, from the Cultural Revolution to today. Following the lives of military intelligence officer Jie and his wife Moon, The Book of Secrets weaves recently found material into a narrative that not only illuminates the shadowy world of intelligence in China, but also the emotional tragedies that political extremism inflicted on those working within. Drawing on Jie's own vivid biography of his youth, Xinran pieces together his trajectory as he joins the great hope of the Chinese young – the Communist Party – and becomes a loyal cadre until the late 1970s when, as a chief in the security forces, he makes a decision that will poison his family against him. This is a totally unique behind-the-scenes account of a family torn apart by the Tiananmen Square massacre and the attempts of Jie to finally open up the Chinese system to the people, pieced together from an extraordinary archive of personal diaries and letters.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

321

Publisher

Bloomsbury Publishing

Published Date

ISBN 10

1399406671

ISBN 13

9781399406673

Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother

Stories of Loss and Love

By: Xinran

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother

Stories of Loss and Love

By: Xinran

Originally published in Great Britain in 2010 by Chatto & Windus.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

274

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1451610947

ISBN 13

9781451610949

China Witness

Voices from a Silent Generation

By: Xinran

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

China Witness

Voices from a Silent Generation

By: Xinran

China Witness is a remarkable work of oral history that lets us see the cultural upheavals of the past century through the eyes of the Chinese who lived through them. Xinran, acclaimed author of The Good Women of China, traveled across China seeking out the nation’s grandparents and great-grandparents, the men and women who experienced firsthand the tremendous changes of the modern era. Although many of them feared repercussions, they spoke with stunning candor about their hopes, fears, and struggles, and about what they witnessed: from the Long March to land reform, from Mao to marriage, from revolution to Westernization. In the same way that Studs Terkel’s Working and Tom Brokaw’s The Greatest Generation gave us the essence of very particular times, China Witness gives us the essence of modern China—a portrait more intimate, nuanced, and revelatory than any we have had before.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

466

Publisher

Anchor

Published Date

ISBN 10

0307388530

ISBN 13

9780307388537

The Good Women of China

Hidden Voices

By: Xinran

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

The Good Women of China

Hidden Voices

By: Xinran

An unprecedented, intimate account of the lives of modern Chinese women, told by the women themselves -- true stories of the political and personal upheavals they have endured in their chaotic and repressive society For eight groundbreaking years, Xinran hosted a radio program in China during which she invited women to call in and talk about themselves. Broadcast every evening, Words on the Night Breeze became famous throughout 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 fear under Communism, 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, these women confide in the reader, sharing their deepest secrets. Whether they are the privileged wives of party leaders or peasants in a forgotten corner of the countryside, they tell of almost inconceivable suffering: forced marriages, sexual abuse, separation of parents from their children, extreme poverty. But they also talk about love -- about how, despite cruelty, despite politics, the urge to nurture and cherish remains. Their stories changed Xinran’s understanding of China forever. Her book will reveal the lives of Chinese women to the West as never before.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

258

Publisher

Vintage Canada

Published Date

ISBN 10

030736626X

ISBN 13

9780307366269

Motherbridge of Love

By: Xinran,Mother Bridge of Love

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Motherbridge of Love

By: Xinran,Mother Bridge of Love

A poem to explain birth parents and adoptive parents to an adopted child.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

Publisher

Barefoot Books

Published Date

ISBN 10

1846860474

ISBN 13

9781846860478

Sky Burial

An Epic Love Story of Tibet

By: Xinran Xue,Xinran

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Sky Burial

An Epic Love Story of Tibet

By: Xinran Xue,Xinran

In 2002 Xinran’sGood Women of Chinabecame an international bestseller, revealing startling new truths about Chinese life to the West. Now she returns with an epic story of love, friendship, courage and sacrifice set in Chinese-occupied Tibet. Based on a true story, Xinran’s extraordinary second book takes the reader right to the hidden heart of one of the world’s most mysterious and inaccessible countries. In March 1958, Shu Wen learns that her husband, an idealistic army doctor, has died while serving in Tibet. Determined to find out what happened to him, she courageously sets off to join his regiment. But to her horror, instead of finding a Tibetan people happily welcoming their Chinese “liberators” as she expected, she walks into a bloody conflict, with the Chinese subject to terrifying attacks from Tibetan guerrillas. It seems that her husband may have died as a result of this clash of cultures, this disastrous misunderstanding. But before she can know his fate, she is taken hostage and embarks on a life-changing journey through the Tibetan countryside — a journey that will last twenty years and lead her to a deep appreciation of Tibet in all its beauty and brutality. Sadly, when she finally discovers the truth about her husband, she must carry her knowledge back to a China that, in her absence, has experienced the Cultural Revolution and changed beyond recognition. . . From the Hardcover edition.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

224

Publisher

Random House Canada

Published Date

ISBN 10

0679313605

ISBN 13

9780679313601

Book's by Xinran Xue

The Promise

The Promise

The Promise

The Promise

The Book of Secrets

The Book of Secrets

Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother

Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother

China Witness

China Witness

The Good Women of China

The Good Women of China

Motherbridge of Love

Motherbridge of Love

Sky Burial

Sky Burial

Username

Password

Username

Password

Password again

Birthday

Email