Category: 2024 Entries
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “An Outrageously Ambitious Not-Quite Masterpiece: Yan Lianke’s Heart Sutra” by Kevin McGeary Yan Lianke (author), Carlos Rojas (translator), Heart Sutra, Glove Atlantic, 2023. 426 pgs. Just as the late…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “An Outrageously Ambitious Not-Quite Masterpiece: Yan Lianke’s π»ππππ‘ ππ’π‘ππ” by Kevin McGeary](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/heart-sutra.jpg?w=995)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Apichatpong Weerasethakul (director), Mysterious Object at Noon, 2000. 83 min. “Enlisting locals to contribute improvised narration to a simple tale, Apichatpong charts the collective construction of the…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βSimultaneities and Narratives in Apichatpong Weerasethakulβs ππ¦π π‘πππππ’π ππππππ‘ ππ‘ ππππ” by Richell Isaiah Flores](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/mysterious-objects-at-noon.jpg?w=1000)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Lawrence Kwan Chun Kan (director), In Broad Daylight η½ζ₯δΉδΈ, 2023. 106 min. In Broad Daylight combines two major news stories that expose abuses against the vulnerable: the…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βNothing Under the Sun Is Truly New: Lawrence Kwan Chun KanβsΒ πΌπ π΅ππππ π·ππ¦πππβπ‘β by Tin Yuet Tam](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/in-broad-daylight_poster.jpg?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Nick Bradley, The Cat and the City, Atlantic Books, 2020. 304 pgs. Nick Bradleyβs The Cat and the City is a patchwork of short stories and vignettes…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βTroubling Facets of Life in Tokyo: Nick Bradley’s πβπ πΆππ‘ πππ π‘βπ πΆππ‘π¦β by Vicky Wong](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/nick-bradley_the-cat-and-the-city.jpg?w=977)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Original and Surreal: Yun Ko-eun’s Table for One” by Jack Greenberg ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Table for One. Yun Ko-eun (author), Lizzie Buehler (translator), Table for One: Stories, Columbia University…
![[REVIEW] “Original and Surreal: Yun Ko-eun’s πππππ πππ πππ” by Jack Greenberg](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/yun-ko-eun_table-for-one.png?w=1024)
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πΒ RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπΒ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Hiroko Oyamada. Hiroko Oyamada (author), David Boyd (translator), The Factory, New Directions, 2019. 128 pgs. The cover is what first…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βSome Sort of Enclosed System: Hiroko Oyamadaβs πβπ πΉπππ‘πππ¦β by Jane McBride](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/hiroko-oyamada_the-factory.jpg?w=931)
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Chinese Abacus 1814 One day, while wandering in the Mong Kok district of Kowloon, I bought an antique abacus. Known as one of the most densely populated areas on earth, Mong Kok is a busy shopping area with many open…
![[EXCLUSIVE] βThe Abacusβ by Jeff Beyl](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/20190329070933623.jpg?w=600)
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π Cha‘s SHΕGUN Feature There have been two adaptations of James Clavellβs 1975 novel ShΕgunβa 1980 miniseries and a new one from this year, currently showing on Hulu and Disney+. This short essay focuses on the 1980 adaptation. Set in…
![[SHΕGUN] βBold Directorial Choices: πβπππ’π (1980)β by e rathke](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/shogun-1980.jpg?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONS π RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on People from My Neighbourhood. Hiromi Kawakami (author), Ted Goossen (translator), People from My Neighbourhood, Granta Books, 2021. 96 pgs. The interconnected stories in Hiromi…
![[REVIEW] βExtraordinarily ordinary?: Hiromi Kawakamiβs ππππππ ππππ ππ¦ ππππβπππ’πβπππβ by Marsha McDonald](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/people-from-my-neighbourhood.jpg?w=1005)
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πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONS πRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Fly Me to the Moon. Sasha Chuk (director), Fly Me to the Moon δ½ι‘δΊΊι·δΉ , 2023. 112 min. A story fraught with the problems and pain…
![[REVIEW] βWhile Weβre Still Connected: Sasha Chukβs πΉππ¦ ππ π‘π π‘βπ ππππβ by Kammy Lee](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/fly-me-to-the-moon.jpg?w=1024)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “To Experience A World That No Longer Exists: Chβoe MyΕngik’s Patterns of the Heart” by Jack Greenberg Chβoe MyΕngik (author), Janet Poole (translator), Patterns of the Heart and Other Stories,…
![[REVIEW] “To Experience A World That No Longer Exists: Chβoe MyΕngik’s πππ‘π‘ππππ ππ π‘βπ π»ππππ‘” by Jack Greenberg](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/patterns-of-the-heart-1.jpg?w=966)
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I remember racing home from school to watch Dragonball Z. I remember blank pages that I filled with Goku and Vegeta and Trunks. I remember trying to draw those trousers especially. All the twists and folds. Spending hour after hour…
![[FEATURE] “Goodnight, Akira Toriyama” by e rathke](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/akira-toriyama.jpg?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILM Wang Anyi (author), Todd Foley (translator), I Love Bill and Other Stories, Foreword by Xudong Zhang, Cornell University Press, 2023. 260 pgs. Since reading the original in 2001, I…
![[REVIEW] “Chinaβs Most Important Woman Writer of The Last Half-century: A Review of Wang Anyi’s πΌ πΏππ£π π΅πππ πππ ππ‘βππ ππ‘πππππ ” by Sabina Knight](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/copy-of-copy-of-copy-of-chris-song.png?w=940)
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Chris Songβs Note: Lawrence Kwok-ling Pun’s ζ½ει short story “Twenty Years Since Losing the City” ε€±εδΊεεΉ΄ is a sequel to Wong Bik-wanβs ι»η’§ι² canonical short story βLosing the Cityβ, which gruesomely explores the despair Hongkongers felt upon the 1997 Handover and the…
![[TRANSLATION] “Twenty Years Since Losing the City” by Lawrence Kwok-ling Pun, Translated by Chris Song](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/lawrence-kwok-ling-pun-e6bd98e59c8be99d88-1.jpg?w=1024)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “The Banality That Starts It All: Dorothy Tse’s Owlish” by Luca Griseri Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Owlish. Dorothy Tse (author), Natascha Bruce (translator), Owlish, Fitzcarraldo Editions, 2023. 224 pgs. Many reviewers…
![[REVIEW] “The Banality That Starts It All: Dorothy Tse’s ππ€πππ β” by Luca Griseri](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/dorothy-tse-cha-an-asian-literary-journal.jpg?w=1024)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “History As Written by the Successful Underdogs: Jing Tsu’s Kingdom of Characters” by Kevin McGeary Jing Tsu, Kingdom of Characters, Riverhead Books, 2023. 336 pgs. The earliest known empire…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “History As Written by the Successful Underdogs: Jing Tsu’s πΎππππππ ππ πΆβπππππ‘πππ ” by Kevin McGeary](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/jing-tsu-kingdom-of-characters.jpg?w=994)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILM Leung Wing-Fai and Andy Willis (editors), East Asian Film Stars, Palgrave Macmillan, 2014. 236 pages. Youβre a Cantonese researcher rummaging through the library and cannot believe your eyes. Thereβs…
![[REVIEW] “Stardom Before Netflix: A Review of πΈππ π‘ π΄π πππ πΉπππ ππ‘πππ ” by Mario Rustan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/east-asian-film-stars.jpg?w=946)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “No Better Place to Start: FuchsiaΒ Dunlop’s Invitation to a Banquet” by Kyle Muntz Fuchsia Dunlop, Invitation to a Banquet: The Story of Chinese Food, Particular Books, 2023, 480 pgs. China…
![[REVIEW] “No Better Place to Start: FuchsiaΒ Dunlop’s πΌππ£ππ‘ππ‘πππ π‘π π π΅ππππ’ππ‘” by Kyle Muntz](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/invitation-to-a-banquet-chinese-food.jpg?w=961)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS Read βReading Jin Yong in Translation, Part IIβ HERE. Jin Yong, aka Louis Cha Leung-yung (1924β2018). β Jin Yong (author), Shelly Bryant, Gigi Chang, and Anna Holmwood (translators) Legends of the…
![[EXCLUSIVE] “Kung Fu Is a Store of Infinite Fun: Reading Jin Yong in Translation, Part I” by Jeff Tompkins](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/legends-of-the-condor-heroes--2.png?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Leta Hong Fincher, Leftover Women: The Resurgence of Gender Inequality in China (10th Anniversary Edition), Bloomsbury, 2023. 280 pgs. In Leftover Women: The Resurgence of Gender Inequality in China Leta Hong…
![[REVIEW] “A Great Cry for Help: Leta Hong Fincher’s πΏπππ‘ππ£ππ πππππ” by Marika Trimigno](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/leta-hong-fincher-leftover-women-the-resurgence-of-gender-inequality-in-china-1.jpg?w=568)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on The Flowers of Lhasa. Tsering Yangkyi (author), Christopher Peacock (translator), The Flowers of Lhasa, Balestier Press, 2022. 205 pgs. The city of Lhasa in Tibet is…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Four Women Migrant Workers: TSERING YANGKYIβS πβπ πΉπππ€πππ ππ πΏβππ π” by David W. Landrum](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/flowers-of-lhasa_tsering-yangkyi.jpg?w=1024)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “The Losers of Chinaβs Sexual Revolution: Tsering Yangkyiβs The Flowers of Lhasa” by Kevin McGeary Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on The Flowers of Lhasa. Tsering Yangkyi (author), Christopher Peacock (translator), The…
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Via. Faai-jee. Thatβs how to say, chopsticks, in Cantonese. Thatβs what my wife taught me. When we were first married, she taught me many Cantonese words for everyday things. One day, just kidding around, I called them choppers. As in,…
![[EXCLUSIVE] “Donβt Call emβ Choppers” by Jeff BeylΒ](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/screenshot-2024-02-28-at-14.47.09.png?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Goro Miyazaki (director), Hayao Miyazaki (co-writer), From Up on Poppy Hill, 2011. 91 min. Yokohama is somewhat in the shadow of neighbouring Tokyo but itβs the second-largest city in…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βOne Foot in the Past, One Foot in the Future: Hayao and Goro Miyazakiβs πΉπππ ππ ππ πππππ¦ π»πππβ by Jeremiah Dutch](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/1_hvheoa-xbqexnbq1dk9jzg.webp?w=1024)
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Iβd nervously sweated through the last 23 hours, certain Iβd be escorted to a ventilation-less detention room to wait for a flight back to the US. And now I faced a Border Control officer who looked through my passport without…
![[EXCLUSIVE] “In Beijing: 12.26-1.10” by Matt Turner](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image0-2.jpeg?w=1024)
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πΒ RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπΒ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ People from My Neighbourhood. Hiromi Kawakami (author), Ted Goossen (translator), People from My Neighbourhood, Granta Books, 2021. 96 pgs. βWhy did you come here?β I…
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βWhen Cosmopolitanism Traverses Across the Screen Beyond SubtitlesβFelicia Chan’s Cosmopolitan Cinema: Cross-Cultural Encounters in East Asian Film” by Kathy Nguyen Felicia Chan, Cosmopolitan Cinema: Cross-Cultural Encounters in East Asian Film,…
![[REVIEW] βWhen Cosmopolitanism Traverses Across the Screen Beyond SubtitlesβFelicia Chan’s πΆππ πππππππ‘ππ πΆπππππ: πΆπππ π -πΆπ’ππ‘π’πππ πΈππππ’ππ‘πππ ππ πΈππ π‘ π΄π πππ πΉπππβ by Kathy Nguyen](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/east-asian-cinema.jpg?w=980)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Slightly Off-kilter Worlds: Yun Ko-eun’s Table for One” by Jennifer Eagleton ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Table for One. Yun Ko-eun (author), Lizzie Buehler (translator),Β Table for One: Stories, Columbia University…
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Chris Song’s Note: Liu Yichangβs εδ»₯ι¬― (1918β2018) short story βLunar New Yearβs Eveβ ι€ε€ imagines the last day of Cao Xueqin ζΉιͺθΉ (1710β1765), author of The Dream of the Red Chamber η΄ ζ¨ε€’, who is believed to have died on Lunar New Yearβs…
![[TRANSLATION] “Lunar New Yearβs Eve” by Liu Yichang, Translated by Chris Song](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/liu-yichang-copy.jpg?w=1024)
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βChina is already a great power, and whether the next three decades will be a cold or a hot war, nothing can stop her now. By the year 2001 she will be a powerful industrial socialist State.ββHan Suyin, China in…
![[EXCLUSIVE] βHan versus Kahn: 1970β by Angus Stewart](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/han-suyin-and-herman-kahn.png?w=1024)
Cha 