This reader for advanced students of Chinese presents ten post-1990 short stories by prominent writers such as Su Tong and Yu Hua, whose novels Raise the Red Lantern and To Live served as the basis for internationally acclaimed films. With its captivating content dealing with current social issues, it fills a gap in the literature for advanced language students who are eager to read extensively in 'real' literature. Vocabulary lists free the student from the chore of constantly consulting a dictionary while reading, grammar and usage examples highlight new patterns, and questions for discussion explore the literary content. This all-fiction collection of contemporary works can be used as a text in language or literature courses or can be read independently.

Ying Wang, assistant professor of Chinese at Mount Holyoke College, is a coeditor of Literature and Society: Advanced Reader of Modern Chinese. Carrie E. Reed, associate professor of Chinese at Middlebury College, is a coauthor of Xiˆoyuén Hˆnyu / Speaking Chinese on Campus: A Textbook for Intermediate Chinese Courses.

'The stories, all published after 1990, reflect the zeitgeist of contemporary China.'-Shuhui Yang, Bates College

'A varied and engaging selection of short fiction. The stories exhibit an interesting range of literary and rhetorical styles, of subject matter, and of authorial sensibilities.'-John Christopher Hamm, University of Washington