The Beijing of Possibilities
by Jonathan Tel
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Description
Blending elements of the surreal with carefully observed details of life in present-day Beijing, Jonathan Tel’s short stories offer a rich and highly entertaining guide to the city and its many and varied inhabitants–from a modern-day Monkey King to an equally contemporary indentured servant, from a boy tasting his first cotton candy to a Ming Dynasty princess posting her first online profile. The stories offer a vicarious tour through modern Beijing and a long view of Chinese history. show more The reader flies through the book, chuckling over one character’s trickery, moved by another’s plight, and horrified at another’s unwitting actions, until reaching the culminating novella, which brings the whole book and its take on China back to the Western reader with a stunning immediacy. Americans’ newly minted fascination with China, stoked by the 2008 Olympics, can find both intellectual and artistic satisfaction in this collection. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Beijing of Possibilities is comprised of twelve witty, sharp, and compelling stories all taking place in contradictory Beijing. Many of the stories address the conflict between old and new. Ancient tradition clashing with modern ambition. Beijing is a hotbed of contradictions. Each character exemplifies and amplifies what happens when cultural norm meets current forward trajectory of capitalism.
The brilliant thread running through all stories: the ancient Monkey King and the modern Olympic pride of the city.
The brilliant thread running through all stories: the ancient Monkey King and the modern Olympic pride of the city.
Short stories, set in Beijing around the time of the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Stylistically, not my cup of tea.
Stylistically, not my cup of tea.
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ThingScore 100
Jonathan Tel, in "The Beijing of Possibilities," reminds us that megalopolises such as Beijing are inexhaustible, and therefore offer endless possibilities. In good ways and bad, they never cease to surprise. One is much more likely to see, for example, a gorilla pedaling a bicycle through urban streets than through country lanes.
added by dcozy
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The China Project Book List
100 works; 2 members
Author Information
5+ Works 127 Members
Jonathan Tel is a UK author who won the 2015 Commonwealth 2015 Short Story Prize for his story 'The Human Phonograph'. The £5000 (A$10,987) prize is presented annually to the best piece of unpublished short fiction, selected from the five regional winners of the prize. (Bowker Author Biography)
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- Members
- 44
- Popularity
- 673,729
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.36)
- Languages
- English
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- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 2
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