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An

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er

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in

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IanJoh

nson

MAY 7, 2015 ISSUE

StrangeStones:DispatchesfromEastandW

est

byPeterHessler

HarperPerennial,354pp.,$14.99(paper)

OracleBones:AJourneyThroughTim

ein

China

byPeterHessler

HarperC

ollinsPublishers,491pp.,$26.95

RiverTown:TwoYearsonth

eYangtze

byPeterHessler

HarperPerennial,402pp.,$15.99(paper)

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MarkL

eong

PeterH

esslerwith

theH

uangs,a

localfish

ingfamilyd

escribedinhis2

003New

Yorkeressa

yUnderw

ater,o

ntherisin

gwaterso

ftheY

angtzeR

ivershortlya

fter

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ateso

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hreeG

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amwereclo

sed,W

ushan,C

hina,Ju

ne2

003

1.

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OnenightinSeptem

ber,threehundredpeoplecrowdedintothebasem

entauditoriumofanofficetow

erinBeijingtohearadiscussionbetw

eentwoofC

hinasmostpopularw

riters.Onew

asLiuY

u,athirtyeightyearoldpoliticalscientistandbloggerw

hohaswrittenabestsellerexplaininghow

Americandem

ocracyworks.

Herfanscallhergoddess

forherwritingsandherstylishlooks.

Butthisevening,L

iuwasjustafoilfortheotherw

riter:PeterHessler,alow

keyNew

Yorkerjournalist.B

asedinC

hinauntil2007,helaterwroteontheA

mericanW

estandnowlivesinE

gypt.Hesslerhasw

rittenthreebooksonC

hinaandacollectionofessays,allpublishedintheUS,andbeenrecognizedw

ithaMacA

rthurfellow

ship.

InChina,how

ever,hehasbeentransformedintoaw

riterofcultfigureproportionswhosefansanalyzehislove

life,histranslatorsfinances,andhischildrenseducation.Anenthusiasthasw

rittenabookimitatinghisprose

styleandretracinghiscareer,whileam

ensfashionmagazineflew

ateamfrom

Londontohissum

merhom

einColoradotoshootathreepagephotospread.C

hinahashadcelebrityauthorsbefore,butneveraforeignerwho

writesonitsm

ostsensitivesubject:itself.

IveknownH

esslerforfifteenyears,butsatsomew

hatbefuddledintheaudience.Asm

uchasIenjoyhiswork,

Icouldnthelpwonderingw

hypeopleintheaudienceseemedsoim

pressedwhenhesaidhisdaughtersw

erelearningA

rabic(notChinese!),orclaspedeachotherw

henhesaidhehopedtoreturntoChinaoneday(w

hatmysteriesaboutusw

illheunveil?).

Organizershadaskedpeopletoregisterfortheeventaheadoftim

e,andmorethanonethousandsignedupfor

thethreehundredseats.Peoplestoodinthebackoftheroomholdingcopiesofhisbooks,orm

illedaroundinthehallw

ayhopingtocatchafewwords.Suddenlytheeveningbegantohavesom

ethingrareinthisstaidcityoftw

entyoddmillion:theelectricityofagenuinepublicevent.

Theauthoritieshaddonetheirbesttopreventthis.T

hetalkwassupposedtohavebeenheldatanearby

university,butadministratorstherehadcanceledatthelastm

inuteafterreceivinginstructionsthattheywerent

supposedtoholdpublicevents,especiallyoneinvolvingaliberalintellectuallikeLiu.A

sChinasideological

atmospherehastightenedrecently,shehascurtailedherblogandseldom

appearsinpublic.

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Liuseem

edeagertomakethem

ostofthisrarepublicforum.Shepointedlydiscussedm

anyofChinasm

ostsensitiveissues:thedem

ocracymovem

entinHongK

ong,theCom

munistPartysrecentdecisiontoabolishthe

notorioussystemofreform

throughlabor,andtheclosingdownofanetw

orkofrurallibrariessuspectedofprom

otingcivilliberties.

Arew

etouchingonasensitiveissuenow?shejokedw

iththeaudience,bothknowingthattheyw

ere,andthatitw

asverboten.

Hessler,bycontrast,kepttohisw

ritingpersona:thewryobserverw

hoinhisworksonC

hinahastakensuchabroadview

thatdailypoliticsrarelyenterhiswork.H

etalkedlargelyaboutworkinginE

gypttheim

portanceofC

airoversustherelativeunimportanceofB

eijing,forexample,orw

hytheEgyptianrevolutionfailed.W

henChinacam

eup,hespokeinfairlyoptimisticterm

sthatcomplim

entedhisaudienceofyoung,whitecollar

workers.T

heynoddedandapplaudedwhenhesaidtheyw

ereagenerationofindividualists,withtheirow

nideasandthoughts.

Whenyoutalktoolderpeopleitisdifficultbecausetheydontliketotalkaboutthem

selves,hesaidinresponsetoaquestioner.B

utifyoutalktoyoungpeople,theyrewillingtotelltheirview

s.Idontknowwhat

theeffectofthiswillbe,butitllhaveanim

pact.

OneofH

esslersmainpointsw

astheimportanceofbeinganobserver.M

anyjournalistsinterviewtheir

subjects,hesaidhisownaim

wastow

atchanddescribe.Severalpeoplemurm

uredapproval.Later,Italkedto

atwentysixyearoldcom

puterprogrammerw

hotoldmethathedidntlikethew

ayChinaisportrayedinthe

foreignpress.Waitingattheendofatw

ohundredpersonlineforanautograph,hesaidofHessler:H

edoesntjudge.T

hatshowIw

anttobe.

Thelastquestionerbeforetheeveningended,though,hadbeenslightlyirritatedbyH

esslersneutrality.Shewasayoungw

omaninaknitdress,andshestutteredasshetriedtom

akeherpoint:Shouldnthiswritingsbe

morethanadescription

shouldnthetrytohelppeople?

Hesslershookhishead.M

yresponsibility,hesaid,istowritetruethings.T

hatsenough.

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2.

Oneofthem

ostvexingquestionsforawriteronC

hinaishowbesttocapturethedram

aofitstransformation.

Twentyyearsago,Ijoinedagovernm

entsponsoredreportingtriptoaremote,im

poverishedpartofthecountry.A

lowlevelofficialandIchattedforhoursasoursm

allbuswoundthroughthem

ountainsofGuizhou

insouthcentralChina,speedingthroughlongtunnelsandoversuspensionbridges.W

hy,heaskedme,do

foreigncorrespondentsonlywriteaboutthebridgethatcollapsesandnotthethousandsofbridgesthatdont?

Ithoughthewasjoking,butasw

etalkedIrealizedhemeantitseriously:countlessstudiesshow

thatoneofthebestm

easurestoalleviatepovertyisbuildinginfrastructure,andherewew

ereonaroadthatwassom

ethingofam

iracletolocalpeople,allowingthem

togettheirproductstomarket,theirchildrentoschools,and

themselvestojobsinthecities.C

hinawasinthem

idstofanunparalleledandlargelysuccessfulattemptto

reducepoverty,sowhyw

ouldntwew

riteaboutthis,heasked.AllIcoulddow

asstammerthatgoodnew

sisnonew

s.BackinB

eijingafewdayslater,Iw

roteastoryaboutagirlwhow

assopoorshelivedinapigstall.Myeditorsloveditandreaderspledgedm

oney,butIwasoftennaggedbythefeelingthatthishadbeenthe

easystory.Morechallengingtoexpectationsw

ouldhavebeentolookathowliveshadchangedinthispoor

partofthecountry.

Theansw

erispartlythatreportersinfreesocietieshaveanobligationtodissectproblems.Journalistsathom

erarelyw

riteaboutthehighwaysthatw

orkbecausethisisassumedtobeagivenw

hatcitizensneedtoknowaboutisthebacklogofunrepairedbridges.B

utwhenappliedabroad,thispracticem

eansasteadystreamof

negativestorieswithnooverallsenseofthebroadsituationofthecountry

inthecaseofChina,reportsof

dissidents,internecinecontestsforpower,andim

pendingcrises.

Certainlytherepressionofdissidentsm

ustbeknownandsom

epositivestoriesdoappear,forexample,about

thehighspeedrailsystemorgrow

ingwealth.B

utevenso,manyarefram

edasnegativestories:highspeedrailticketsaretooexpensiveforthepoor,orprosperityisconflatedw

itharisingclassofboorishandcorruptnouveauxriches.Itm

aybethatjournalismisnotthebestm

ediumforconveyingthebroadestsocialtrends,but

westilldontoftenhearaboutthequietem

ergenceofatruemiddleclassofshopkeepersandtradespeople,or

aninternationallyengaged,bookreadingpubliceagertohearfromtheoutsidew

orld.

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H Hesslersw

orkchallengestraditionalcoverageofChina.Im

ethimin1999,w

henIhiredhimtobearesearcher

intheBeijingbureauofT

heW

allS

treetJournal.B

ythenhehadalreadyspenttwoyearsinthesm

allChinese

cityofFulingasanEnglishinstructoratateacherscollege.H

ewaslivingathom

einColum

bia,Missouri,

havingjustcompletedthem

anuscriptforRiverT

own:T

woYearso

ntheY

angtze,butw

antedtoreturntoChina

tokeepwriting.Iw

asimpressedthathehadexperienceinafairlyrem

otepartofChinaandofferedhim

ajoboverthephone.

Likeallw

riters,Hesslersw

ritingvoiceandactualpersonalityarenotthesame.Inhisbooks,heisagood

naturedmidw

esternerwhogentlyintroducesustocharactersm

odestlydescribedasfriendsorpeoplehestum

bledacross.Heneverfoistsideasonthereader,butletsthem

flowfrom

hischaracters.Readinghisbooks,

itshardnottolikeandtrusthim.O

neoftheWestsgreatesthistoriansofC

hina,PaulCohen,recentlyw

roteanexceptional,tw

entyonepageappreciationofHesslerinT

heJo

urnalofA

sianStudies,laudingthisem

pathy:

Heobserves,hedescribes,heexplains,but,althoughoccasionallydism

ayedatthebehaviorofindividualChinese,healm

ostneverisjudgmentalabouttheC

hinesecollectively.Onthecontrary,hisbasic

humanityenableshim

,consistently,toenterthoughtfullyintothefeelingsandbehaviorofpeoplewhoare

differentinjustabouteverywayfrom

himself.

Inperson,heismorepointedinarguinghisideasandstubbornindefendingthem

.By2000,atagethirtyone,

hewasw

ritingregularlyforTheN

ewYorkerbuthisarticlesw

erenothispredominantconcern.Instead,he

pursuedbookprojectsandcarvedarticlesoutofthemforthem

agazineasopposedtotheusualpracticeof

magazinew

riterswhoproducearticlesandcobblethem

togetherintobooks.Forhim,hislargerunderstanding

ofChinacam

efirst,thejournalismsecond.

esslersawthestoryofC

hinainthe1990sand2000sasdrivennotbynationallyknownpersonalitiesor

dramaticnew

sevents,butbyanepochalmovem

entofhundredsofmillionsofpeopleoutofpoverty,andoutof

thevillagelifethathaddominatedC

hinesecivilization.Itwastheriseofindividuals

peoplewiththeirow

naspirationsandgoals,w

hichtheypursuedinthespacegrantedbythepostMaostate.H

esslerlivedinChina

whilepeoplelikefutureN

obellaureateLiuX

iaobowerepubliclyactive,butheneverw

roteaboutthem.T

ohim

,theymightbenoblebutw

eremarginal.T

hattheywerepersecutedprovedthestatesparanoia,nottheir

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largersignificanceforChinasfuture.

Duringhistour,Ihadthechancetotalktohim

atsomelength,andheem

phasizedtomethatheisntallergicto

politics.InEgypt,hehasw

rittenextensivelyabouttheMuslim

Brotherhoodandattendedform

erpresidentMoham

edMorsistrial.InC

hinahisbooksincludeanindepthlookatthePartysoperationinavillageandsensitiveissuessuchashiringunderagew

orkers.

ButinC

hina,hesaid,hefeltthatelitepoliticsarelessimportant,especiallyw

hentheyrevolvearoundclassicdissidentschallengingthestate.D

uringhiselevenyearsinChina,H

esslersaidhehadbeenentrenchedinacom

munitythreetim

estheteacherscollege(tw

oyears),avillage(sevenyears),andacompanytow

n(threeyears)

andcouldfolloweventstherelongitudinally.Ineachplace,thesam

epatternemerged:them

osttalentedpeopleeitherw

ererecruitedbythePartyorquietlydisengagedfromit.T

heonlypeoplewhoactually

foughtthePartywerepoorlyconnectedandoftendysfunctional

petitioners,forexample,orotherm

arginalfigures.M

anywereinterestingandhew

roteaboutthemindepth,buttheyw

erenotdrivingevents.

Thisisw

hyIthinkitsabigmistaketofocustoom

uchonthehighprofileandtrulyremarkabledissidents,

Hesslertoldm

e.ItgivestheAmericanreadertheim

pressionthatthereallysmartpeopleinC

hinaareopposedtotheParty.

Thesestronglyheldideasunderpinhisbooks.M

anyjournalistsinChinahavebeenturnedoff

Ioftenheardthem

saytheywishedhew

ouldfinallytacklearealtopicratherthanhisallegoricaltalesfromsm

alltowns.

Butreadersseem

tofindsomethingofvalue.A

ccordingtoroyaltystatementsattheendoflastJune,H

esslersfourbookshavesold385,000copiesintheU

S,afigurethateasilymakeshim

themostinfluentialpopular

writeronC

hinaindecades.

ManyreadersrealizeintuitivelythatifC

hinawereacountryprim

arilydefinedbythetroublesreportedinthemedia,itw

ouldbeabasketcase.Yetthisdoesntm

atchtherisingpowertheyknow

fromtheirshoppingm

allsorw

orkplaces.HesslersportraitshelpexplainarisingC

hina,anddosothroughgentleandoftenoptimistic

storiesthatparallelmythsfam

iliartoAmericans

HoratioA

lgertypetalesofpeopleonthemove.

Nottoolongafterhebecam

eafixtureinTheN

ewYorker,H

esslersstoriesbeganattractingChinesereaders,

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B too,thankstotheChinesetranslationw

ebsiteYeeya

n(www.yeeyan.org).R

eaderswerestunnedthataforeigner

wasinterestedinordinarypeople.C

hinahaslittletraditionofnarrativenonfiction.Thefew

booksthatdealwithdailylife,suchasthesociologistL

iangHongsstudyofherhom

evillage,LiangVilla

gein

China,have

soldwell,buttheyarerareandm

ostarepoorlywritten.

PeoplebeganbuyingChineseeditionsofH

esslersbookspublishedinTaiw

an.Chatroom

sbeganfillingupwithreportsofhisdoings.B

ythetimehisbooksbegantobepublishedinC

hinain2010,hewasafullblow

ncelebrity,eclipsinganyotherforeignw

riteronChina.H

isonlybooknottobetranslatedisOracleB

ones,a

widerangingw

orkthatincludestheNatobom

bingoftheChineseem

bassyinBelgrade,thecrushingofthe

Falungongspiritualmovem

ent,andethnictensions.HesslersC

hineseeditortoldmethatthesetopicsm

adethebooktoopoliticaltopasscensorshipsothepublishinghousehasnttried.Still,H

esslerhassold500,000booksinC

hinainjustfouryears.

utthisputsHessleratthecenterofavexingandheateddiscussion:H

owshouldW

esternwritersdealw

ithcensorship?W

ritingoncontemporaryC

hinaandpublishingtherealmostinevitablym

eanacceptinggovernm

entcuts.Isthisacceptableifawriteristryingtoachievew

hathetakestobethelargeraimof

portrayingalittleknownreality?

Theissuehasbeenw

idelydebatedintheWestoverthepastyear,w

ithTheN

ewYorkT

imespublishingam

ajorfeatureonthetopic.

Then,inM

ay,HesslerssuccessorasT

heN

ewYorkerscorrespondentinC

hina,Evan

Osnos,publishedanO

pEdintheT

imesabouthisdecisionnottopublishhisnew

book,Ageo

fAmbitio

n,inChina

whichrecentlyw

ontheNationalB

ookAwardfornonfiction

becauseaprospectiveChinesepublisher

toldhimthataboutaquarterofthebookw

ouldhavetobecutormodified.

Thisisntsurprisingbecause

Osnossbookdealsexplicitlyw

ithcontemporarypoliticsandportraysw

ellknowndissidents,suchastheartist

AiW

eiweiandtheblindlaw

yerChenG

uangcheng.Probablynoauthorwouldconsenttosuchw

holesalecuts.ButinhisO

pEd,O

snosarguedthatevenminorcutsareunacceptablebecausetheygiveC

hineseafalsesenseofw

hattheworldthinksofthem

andtheirpoliticalsystem:

Itistemptingtoacceptcensorshipasam

atterofthemargins

apruningthatleavesthecoreofthestoryintact

butalteringtheproportionsofaportraitofChinagivesafalsereflectionofhow

Chinaappearsto

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theworldatam

omentw

henitismakingfundam

entalchoicesaboutwhatkindofcountryitw

illbecome.

Recently,thew

ellknownC

hinesehistorianJosephEsherickjoinedthedebate,takingtheoppositetack.Inan

essayontheChinaFilew

ebsite,Esherickexplainedhow

censorsdemandedsignificantchangestohisrecent

bookaboutafamousfam

ilyinChinesehistory.H

edescribedhowhesuccessfullyarguedw

iththemonsom

epoints,butintheendagreedtocutsandalterations.T

hereason,hewrote,isbecausehebelievesthatchangein

Chinaw

illhappenbycontinuingadialoguewithC

hinesecolleagues,engagingthecensors,andpushingtheenvelopetoitsgreatestpossibleextent.

Hesslerjoinedthedebatehim

selfinTheN

ewYorker(T

ravelswith

myC

ensor,March9,2015),portrayingbookcensorshipinC

hinaasmuchlighterthanm

anyoutsidersexpect,andcarriedoutbypeoplew

hoareofteneagertocircumventrestrictions.

LikeE

sherick,Hessleragreedtotrim

s.RiverT

ownseem

stohavesufferedtheleast,withjustafew

referencestoD

engXiaopingandthehandoverofH

ongKongin1997excised.Iw

ondered,however,w

hatthecensorsmadeofhism

ostpoliticallysensitiveessay,aseventeenpagepieceintheessaycollectionStra

ngeS

tones

aboutthePartyleadershipsretreatattheseasideresortofBeidaihe.

IfoundthatahalfdozensentenceshadbeencutintheChineseedition,suchasthisone:C

ommunistC

hinahadneverhadanorderlysuccession

forhalfacentury,everytransferofpowerhadinvolvedcoupsorpow

erstruggles.Ialsofoundm

anysmallerexam

plesofthetranslatorsmoothingoverphrasesthatm

ightoffendcensors,substitutingthew

ordlocationforbattlegroundinreferringtothemeetingatB

eidaihe,orchaosinsteadofcrackdow

ntodescribethe1989Tiananm

enmassacre.

Hesslerhasrecentlyputupaw

ebsite(www.peterhessler.net)w

ithaChineselanguagepagethatliststhem

ajorcuts.H

ealsogothisChinesepublishertoincludeashortnoteatthestartofnew

editionsofhisbooksdirectingthem

tothissite.Todate,thesitehasallthem

ajorcutpassagesfromhisthreebookspublishedinC

hina,butnotthesm

allerwordchanges.

How

significantaretheseedits?ThepublishedaccountoftheB

eidaiheconclavelosesthetensionthatHessler

originallyintendedwhenheportrayeditasashow

downbetw

eenoutgoingCom

munistPartybossJiangZ

emin

andhissuccessor,HuJintao.T

hesharpsentencesmakingthispointareexpunged,blurringw

hatwasalreadyan

impressionisticessay.IfC

hinesereadersweretothinkthatthisisalltheW

estsmostinfluentialw

riterontheir

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countryhastosayonthesubject,theywouldbem

isled.

Andyettheessayw

asprobablyintendednotasacomprehensiveaccountofleadershipconclaves,butasalook

athowordinarypeopleperceiveelitepolitics.H

esslerwritesaboutarrivinginB

eidaiheandcheckingintoasanatorium

,wherem

ostresidentsareoldworkers

thesortofpeoplebeingcrowdedoutoftodaysC

hinesesociety.H

edescribesbeingfollowedbysecretpolice,andtalkingtotheoldw

orkerswhoknow

hesbeingfollow

ed.Theylaughatthecops,im

plicitlyshowingtheirsolidarityw

ithhim.A

llofthisisintheChinese

edition,withnochanges.ItsnotH

esslersfullaccount,butitsstillrevealingofChineselifeinH

esslersdistinctivew

ay.Isthatgoodenough?

3.

Thesedebatessw

irledthroughmyheadasIbrow

sedtheshelvesofabookstoreinBeijingcalledO

neWay

StreetSpace.Itoccupiespartofaformergovernm

entthinktank,athreestorystructurefromthe1950sm

adeofbrickandcoveredinvines.T

heownersguttedtheinsidetoexposethebrickandconcreteskeleton,andgaveit

asleekfinishofparquetfloors,whitebookcases,andspotlighting.Ifoundtitlesthathadbeenm

uchdiscussedinC

hina,suchasTheD

ictatorsH

andbookbyB

ruceBuenodeM

esquitaandPaulFussellsClass,but

wonderedw

hatwasbetw

eenthecovers.

ThisSeptem

ber,forsixhours,OneW

ayStreetwasgivenovertoH

esslermania.Intheafternoon,adozen

journalistsbadgeredhimfortw

ohoursonastrangevarietyoftopics,fromhisview

songeneticallymodified

crops(hehasnoopinion)towhetherhishum

orousstoryaboutarestaurantwhereratw

asservedwasm

eanttoshow

Chinainabadlight(itw

asntitw

asjustafunnystoryhehadsenthismentor,theauthorJohnM

cPhee,whorecom

mendedittoT

heN

ewYorker)andhow

hischildrenaredoing(fine).Nooneaskedhim

what

politicalideasunderlayhiswritings

whyhedidntw

riteaboutdissidents,forexample.W

henIaskedthejournalistsaboutthislater,theygavem

ethestockanswerthatH

esslerwasjustanobserver,faithfullyrecording

whathesaw

.

Butthejournalistsw

ereaskingotherquestionsaswell.M

ostdealtwithw

riting:whatw

ritershewasreading,

howtousedifferentvoices,andtow

hatextenttrueobjectivityispossible.Inoneway,itw

asanoddexercise

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ooks

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://ww

w.n

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om

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becausenoneofthejournalistslaterpublishedstoriesonthisquestionmostdidfairlystandardstoriesabout

thefamousw

ritercomingtotow

n.Italmostseem

edsadheretheyw

ere,hopingtowritegreatnonfiction,but

wouldtheyhavethechance?Still,itsalsotruethattechnicalquestionscanleadtobroaderlessons.Ithoughtof

afriendwhorecentlylecturedinaclassrunbyaC

hinesephotographerfamousforhispicturesofpollution,but

alsoknowninphotographycirclesforposinghissubjects.H

ehadtoldhisstudentsthatthiswasokay,andso

thestudentswerestunnedw

henthevisitorsaiditwasnot

documentingrealityrequiresacodeofethics.It

isntsubstitutingoneformofpropagandaforanother.

Afterthepressconferenceandahastydinner,H

esslergavehisfamiliartalk,inC

hinese,toaboutonehundredreaderscram

medintothebookstoressecondfloorlecturehall.H

edescribedscenesfromhischildhood,w

henhegottoknow

afriendofthefamily,theC

hineseAmericansociologistPeterK

ongMingN

ew.H

esslerwas

namedaftertheolderm

an,andsaidhelearnedmuchofthecraftofobservationfrom

him.T

hemanalso

seemedextraordinarilytallandtalkative.

IgrewupthinkingC

hineseweregiantsw

holikedtotellstories,Hesslersaidtom

uchlaughter.

Itwasashrew

dtopicbecauseitmadeH

esslerintoaWesternerinfluencedbyaC

hinesescholaraw

elcome

reversalofrolesformanyw

hofeeltheyareconstantlybeingtoldtolearnfromtheW

est,onlytobelecturedthattheyhaventlearnedenough.ItalsoreinforcedtheassertionthatH

esslersChinesepublishersprom

ote:thatatheartheisasocialscientistlookingatC

hina,anobjectiveobserverwithnoagenda.Idheardthisfrom

manyreaders,w

hoseemedconvincedthattheyw

eredealingwithascholarcom

parable,say,toTalcott

Parsons,theprominentH

arvardsociologist.

Theeventendedandpeoplelineduptogettheirbookssigned.B

esidesHessler,Iseem

edtobetheonlyothervisibleforeignerintheroom

andpeoplesoonsurroundedme.

Hew

orkedforyouatTheW

allS

treetJournal?W

hatwashelike?T

ellusastory.

Iaskedwhytheyreadhim

.Afterall,theym

ustknowChinabetterthanaM

issourian.

Heshow

susafamiliarcountry,butonew

eneversawbefore,saidoneyoungm

an,atwentyfiveyearold

engineernamedB

rianCheung.H

ecaresaboutthelivesofordinarypeople.

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ohnson | T

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evie

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ooks

http

://ww

w.n

ybooks.c

om

/artic

les/a

rchiv

es/2

015/m

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12345 Atallyoungm

anoftwentyninestoodinthebackground.W

henthecrowdthinnedout,hesteppedforw

ardandidentifiedhim

selfasanEnglishteacheratalocaluniversity.

Idliketohearmorefrom

himaboutpolitics.Ifeelw

eneedtoknowmoreaboutL

iuXiaoboandC

harter08,hesaidoftheim

prisoneddissidentandhismanifestoforpoliticalchange.

Butifhisbooksw

ereaboutthathewouldntbehereprom

otinghisbooks,Isaid.Thosekindsofbookscant

bepublishedhere.

Iknow,Iknow

.Theyoungm

ansaid.ButIstillw

anttoknowaboutthattoo.

Andyetyourehere.

HenoticesthingsaboutC

hinathatmakeusthink.H

eseesasloganonthewallanddescribesit,justlikethat.

Nocom

mentary.Justtheslogan,andw

henitstoldlikethat,itseemsabsurd,laughable,likeK

underasThe

Joke.A

ndwethink:W

hatarethoseslogansdoingthere?T

heyareabsurd.A

ndthenyoustarttothink:Why?

SeemyQ

&AwithL

uYiu,H

owtobeaC

hineseDem

ocrat,NYRblog,February3,2015.

PeterHessler:T

eacher,Archaeologist,A

nthropologist,TravelW

riter,MasterStoryteller,T

heJo

urnalofA

sianStudies,V

ol.72,No.2(M

ay2013).

SeeAndrew

Jacobs,AuthorsA

cceptCensorsR

ulestoSellinChina,T

heN

ewYorkT

imes,O

ctober19,2013.

SeeEvanO

snos,ChinasC

ensoredWorld,T

heN

ewYorkT

imes,M

ay2,2014.Osnossbookw

asreviewedinthesepagesbyPerryL

ink,August14,2014.

SeeJosephEsherick,O

nDealingw

ithChineseC

ensors,ChinaFile,O

ctober14,2014.

1963-2015 NYREV, Inc. All rights reserved.

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