介绍:
"Avantgarde", "sensational" and "provocative"— these words are commonly used to label the works of Chinese author Hong Ying.
Whether these descriptions are accurate or not, this internationally acclaimed writer is best-known for her heart-wrenching sensitivity and unabashed honesty in exploring the bygone days of her family and China, which credits her as one of the most controversial writers in the country.
But in her latest work, "The Girl from the French Fort", Hong Ying departs from her usual style, by joining hands with British illustrator Cherry Denman and penning down a fairy tale.
Zhang Wan has the details.
Reporter:
With the part of Yangtze River passing through the city, Chongqing in southwest China has been a transportation hub of great importance since the ancient times. By the end of the 19th century, foreign settlers crowded into the town. In 1902, a French naval officer built a European-styled barracks on the south bank of the river, which is named as Odent Fort by the locals.
For today's younger generation, this kind of western architecture is not uncommon. But for Hong Ying, a post-60s writer who was born and raised in Chongqing, this fort-like building used to symbolize a secretive, exotic and mysterious world during her childhood.
"You can say this is a castle, a white castle. When I was very little, maybe four or five years old, each time when I past the castle, I cannot get in, because it is (was) closed. Until two years ago, I took my daughter and went there. Everything was just like in my imagination. I was immediately thinking of some stories. In the evening, when my daughter went to bed, I tell (told) her the story. My daughter really liked (the tale) about a young boy saving his mother and using the magic. I think it's a love story. My daughter said that why don't you tell it to other children. That's why I wrote it down. That's my first book about children. "
Written in a poetic and dreamlike style, the book "The Girl from the French Fort" follows the adventure of a fatherless Chongqing boy named Sangsang during the 1970s. After saving a pigeon from a cat, he met a little girl on the shore and she took him to the naval fort, a deserted historical site that had been closed for many years. When he stepped inside, the once cobweb-covered building was ablaze with light and numerous fragrant flowers. In this heavenly and marvelous place, the boy enjoyed a banquet and met the crews from the French warship Lafayatte, which allegedly sank in the Yangtze River many years ago.
But the story is not all about childlike fantasy and joy. It is also shrouded with realistic sadness. After spending one night at the fort, Sangsang went back home and found out he had been away for almost half a year and his mother had died.
Thankfully, the writer was kind enough to give a magic feather to the boy and let him to change the seemingly fixed destiny of everyone. Flipping through the pages, prudent readers would realize that the tale is not just an allegory of virtue being rewarded, but also a paean to the power of innocence and a self-searching journey.
"I think the story is for both children and adults. Because when I wrote this, I told story for my daughter, but I was also thinking for myself. The young boy Sangsang is very kind, very generous and brave. He wants to change his fate. I just want to return to my childhood. That's why I created Sangsang in my book. "
Apart from the story, readers can also be mesmerized by the 25 exquisite illustrations. Drawn by Cherry Denman, an accomplished British illustrator and an old friend of the writer, the pictures capture the elegance of Chongqing, the stunning beauty of the French fort and the mysterious flair instilled in the story.
From the Chinese-styled ceremonial archway to the slum in south Chongqing, every nook and cranny is drawn in vivid details, which makes it hard to believe that the illustrator has never visited the city.
Denman admits that drawing something about China is not so easy.
"The images in China are so strong and the designing is so strong. But I am slightly worried about it has been too European. It's hard for me to make them Chinese. So I am trying to do a weird hybrid and also Chinese faces are very hard for me to draw. They are completely different from European faces. So you have to forgive illustrators a little bit. You know the whole thing about Chinese art is not what you put in that really out. "
But she is grateful for Hong Ying to help her out.
"This is the first time I have done this with a proper Chinese author. It's a great responsibility!Can I say it is terrifying? Because if it's just me, it's fine, I do what I like. But when you work with somebody else, you think it's really doubt trouble. But it's fun and it's a good discipline. It's interesting. Hong Ying gave me everything, absolutely everything and she pushed me to places I haven't been for a long time. "
Since its release, "The Girl from the French Fort" has received great success in the market and has been selected as one of the most popular children's books by Amazon.
But Hong Ying and Cherry Denman are not going to stop right here. Focusing on the growth of the protagonist Sangsang and the legend of the Ba Kingdom, an ancient Chinese kingdom located in today's Chongqing, this Sino-UK partnership is ready to produce more illustrated fair tales.
The second installment of Hong Ying's Sangsang series, "The Legend of Liya", is going to be released in the near future.
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