Author Description

This is the print version of the second issue of Chinese Literature and Culture (ISSN 2332-4287 print; ISSN 2334-1122 online), a journal published three times a year and available as a book series. This volume features: Six stories: "An Empty Home" by Xiu Bai, "Hunting Season" by Ying Chuan, "Journey of Conscience" by Yao Emei, "The Story of Hu Wenqing" by Wei Wei, "Defending the Teacher" by Xiao Su, and "Knowing Nobody, a Housemaid in Beijing" by Liu Qingbang, and Mu Tao's Lu Xun Prize winning essay: "Culture Has Blood and Flesh." From the runaway bride Peach in "An Empty Home" to the mute housemaid Jiahui in "Journey of Conscience" to the successful but disillusioned businessman Hu Wenqing, this volume reflects the diverse problems of contemporary Chinese work-a-day life and a search for meaning in a changing world. From most of these stories you hear the critical voice of today's Chinese writers and a call to the reader, beyond cultural borders, to a critical engagement with life's final questions.