Category: Essays
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Reading Cinema Beyond Geopolitics: Rey Chowโs Sentimental Fabulations, Contemporary Chinese Films” by Jessica Morris Rey Chow. Sentimental Fabulations, Contemporary Chinese Films: Attachment in the Age of Global Visibility, Columbia University…
![[ESSAY] “Reading Cinema Beyond Geopolitics: Rey Chowโs ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ ๐น๐๐๐ข๐๐๐ก๐๐๐๐ , ๐ถ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ฆ ๐ถโ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐น๐๐๐๐ ” by Jessica Morris](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/sentimental-fabulations-contemporary-chinese-films-attachment-in-the-age-of-global-visibility.jpg?w=455)
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[Artist Statement] โShanghai Flower: A Tribute to Eileen Changโ by Antzu Huang 2025 marked the centenary of the legendary author Eileen Chang, one of the great figures of modern Chinese literature. In her honour, I wrote an electronic ballad, โShanghai…
![[Artist Statement] โShanghai Flower: A Tribute to Eileen Changโ by Antzu Huang](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/28181042-eileen-chang_cover_1444x2000.jpg?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] “To Belong: Impressions of Hong Kong” by Raimondo Vanitelli Photograph ยฉ Raimondo Vanitelli You take in the city and the city accepts you, even if momentarily. 1 The intersection feels timeless. Red cabs with white roofs honk at each other,…
![[ESSAY] “To Belong: Impressions of Hong Kong” by Raimondo Vanitelli](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/raimondo-vanitelli-2.jpg?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] โThe Switzerland She Waited Forโ by Shiwani Dhiman Authorโs Note: This story is personal, based on conversations I had with my mother-in-law, Dahlia Chaudhuri, as she spoke about her memories of marriage, her younger self, and her long-awaited trip…
![[ESSAY] โThe Switzerland She Waited Forโ by Shiwani Dhiman](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/screenshot-2026-08-31-at-16.05.30.png?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] “The Chinese Girl in Paris: An Unfinished Portrait of China” by William Grice โJe te souhaite une vie heureuseโ, a final dispatch from Paris before the correspondence fell silent. Letters from Rue de la Sourdiรจre, a full moon over…
![[ESSAY] “The Chinese Girl in Paris: An Unfinished Portrait of China” by William Grice](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/william-grice-1.jpg?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] โA Look Back on Anime: Memoir, Poetics, and Literary Hedonismโ by Franz Austin V. De Mesa Filipinos wave a One Piece flag as they take part in a protest against corruption at Rizal Park. Photograph: Ezra Acayan/Getty Image On 21…
![[ESSAY] โA Look Back on Anime: Memoir, Poetics, and Literary Hedonismโ by Franz Austin V. De Mesa](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/e28098a-symbol-of-liberation-how-the-one-piece-manga-flag-became-the-symbol-of-asias-gen-z-protest-movement.jpeg?w=399)
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[ESSAY] “Shades of Huแบฟ” by Cheryl Chong The heat has a strange way of blurring things in Huแบฟ. We glimpse rust-coloured shophouses and dusk-toned homes, most of them melding into a haze as our chartered car nears the city centre.…
![[ESSAY] “Shades of Huแบฟ” by Cheryl Chong](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/view-from-the-melia-vinpearl-hue-otherwise-known-as-the-hotel.jpg?w=1024)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “The Ecstasy of Love: The Precarious Line Between Reality and Illusion in Kiwi Chow’s Beyond the Dream” by Hilda Wong Kiwi Chow (director). Beyond the Dream, 2019. 120 min. Is…
![[ESSAY] “The Ecstasy of Love: The Precarious Line Between Reality and Illusion in Kiwi Chow’s ๐ต๐๐ฆ๐๐๐ ๐กโ๐ ๐ท๐๐๐๐” by Hilda Wong](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/beyond-the-dream.webp?w=750)
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[ESSAY] “Home” by Daniel Cheng Right: A photograph taken by the author in NewfoundlandLeft: A photograph taken by the author during his first semester in Waterloo Iโm flying home to Newfoundland for Christmas, for the first time since leaving home.…
![[ESSAY] “Home” by Daniel Cheng](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/22home22-by-daniel-cheng-.png?w=937)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Scattered Thoughts and Admiration for Her Name Upon the Strand and Other Tammythings: A Partial Retrospective” by Cyril Camus Click here to read all entries in Chaon An Extraterrestrial ๐ป…
![[ESSAY] “Scattered Thoughts and Admiration for ๐ป๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐กโ๐ ๐๐ก๐๐๐๐ and Other Tammythings: A Partial Retrospective” by Cyril Camus](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/books-by-tammy-lai-miing-ho.png?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] “No Moral at Its End” by Matt Reeck Also read Matt Reeck’s story “Three Travelling Portraits: India”. When I wrote โThree Travelling Portraits,โ I was interested in depicting some of the sexual tension that I had experienced and witnessed…
![[ESSAY] “No Moral at Its End” by Matt Reeck](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/screenshot-2026-07-10-at-19.06.38.png?w=850)
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[ESSAY] “The Internet Cafe That Died During The Pandemic” by Laurehl Onyx B. Cabiles There was a well-known internet cafรฉ in our municipality. Like all other small businesses, it was located at our public terminal since there were no complex…
![[ESSAY] “The Internet Cafe That Died During The Pandemic” by Laurehl Onyx B. Cabiles](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/screenshot-2026-07-11-at-11.40.29.png?w=824)
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[ESSAY] โSaigon, in a Previous Lifeโ by Yun Li Yun Li’s note on “Saigon, in a Previous Life”: “Saigon, in a Previous Life” was originally written in Chinese and published as “่ฅฟ่ดก็ๅไธไป็” in the Night Light Cup section of Xinmin…
![[ESSAY] โSaigon, in a Previous Lifeโ by Yun Li](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/screenshot-2026-07-09-at-16.04.22.png?w=849)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] โInto the Heart of Darkness in Rudraneil Senguptaโs The Beast Within and Nilanjana S. Royโs Black Riverโ by Rituparna Mukherjee ๐ธ Rudraneil Sengupta. The Beast Within, Context, 2025. 352 pgs.๐ธ…
![[ESSAY] โInto the Heart of Darkness in Rudraneil Senguptaโs ๐โ๐ ๐ต๐๐๐ ๐ก ๐๐๐กโ๐๐ and Nilanjana S. Royโs ๐ต๐๐๐๐ ๐
๐๐ฃ๐๐โ by Rituparna Mukherjee](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/rudraneil-sengupta.-the-beast-within-context-2025.-352-pgs.-nilanjana-s.-roy.-black-river-pushkin-vertigo-2024.-368-pgs.png?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] โLiner Notesโ by Jeremiah Dutch Also read Jeremiah Dutch’s story “Cool Jazz at the Dragonfly Club”. โAnyone who understands jazz knows that you canโt understand it. Itโs too complicated. Thatโs whatโs so simple about it.โ โAttributed to Yogi Berra…
![[ESSAY] โLiner Notesโ by Jeremiah Dutch](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/liner-notes-jeremiah-dutch.png?w=864)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Finding My Own Silent Friends: From the Botanical Garden to Hong Kong’s Streets” by Jennifer Eagleton Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon SILENT FRIEND. Ildikรณ Enyedi (director), Silent…
![[ESSAY] “Finding My Own Silent Friends: From the Botanical Garden to Hong Kong’s Streets” by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/screenshot-2026-06-02-at-10.42.17.png?w=824)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] โWhat Lingers: On Babitha Marina Justinโs The Way Madmen Smellโ by Ankush Banerjee Babitha Marina Justin. The Way Madmen Smell, Red River Press, 2026. 149 pgs. Noted Trivandrum-based academic, poet,…
![[ESSAY] โWhat Lingers: On Babitha Marina Justinโs ๐โ๐ ๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐โ by Ankush Banerjee](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/the-way-madmen-smell-by-babitha-marina-justin-.jpg?w=868)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “A Landmark in Environmental Science: Ma Tianjie’s In Search of Green China“ by Laurence Westwood Ma Tianjie. In Search of Green China, Polity Books, 2025. 272 pgs. Beginning in the…
![[ESSAY] “A Landmark in Environmental Science: Ma Tianjie’s ๐ผ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐โ ๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐๐ ๐ถโ๐๐๐” by Laurence Westwood](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/in-search-of-green-china-tianjie-ma-livres.jpg?w=575)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] โSimmering, Steaming, Spilling: On Hongwei Baoโs Queer Playtext Hot Potโ by Ronny Chan Clickย HERE to readย all entries inย Chaonย Hot Pot. Hongwei Bao. Hot Pot, Poetic Edge Publishers, 2026. 112 pgs. “To…
![[ESSAY] โSimmering, Steaming, Spilling: On Hongwei Baoโs Queer Playtext ๐ป๐๐ก ๐๐๐กโ by Ronny Chan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/hongwei-bao.-hot-pot-poetic-edge-publishers-2026.-112-pgs.png?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] โHot Pot: A Queer East Asian Play About A Meal, Four Friends and What Remains Unsaidโ by Hongwei Bao Clickย HERE to readย all entries inย Chaonย Hot Pot. Hongwei Bao (playwright). Hot Pot: A Queer East Asian Play About A Meal, Four…
![[ESSAY] โ๐ป๐๐ก ๐๐๐ก: A Queer East Asian Play About A Meal, Four Friends and What Remains Unsaidโ by Hongwei Bao](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/hot-pot-poster-square-with-title.jpg?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] “Memory and Music: Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Michael Raymond The first time I ever heard Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” I was watching the music video through a mosquito net late at night. Just me and the dim,…
![[ESSAY] “Memory and Music: Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Michael Raymond](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/screenshot-2026-05-27-at-20.06.27.png?w=1024)
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FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] “Yi-Ling Liuโs Portrait of Chinaโs Digital Dissidents in The Wall Dancers” by Johanna M. Costigan Yi-Ling Liu. The Wall Dancers: Searching for Freedom and Connection on the Chinese Internet, Knopf, 2026,…
![[ESSAY] “Yi-Ling Liuโs Portrait of Chinaโs Digital Dissidents in ๐โ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ท๐๐๐๐๐๐ ” by Johanna M. Costigan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/wall-dancers.jpg?w=987)
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[ESSAY] “Of Elephants and Peoples” by Aishwarya Narayanan Image Periyar Tiger Reserve is located in the South-Western Ghats of India, administratively falling under the Idukki, Kottayam, and Pathanamthitta districts of Kerala. Encompassing 925 kilometres of protected wilderness, the Reserve is…
![[ESSAY] “Of Elephants and Peoples” by Aishwarya Narayanan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/elephants-https-periyartigerreserve.org_.jpg?w=1024)
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Editor’s note: In this essay, Chris Song reflects on debates in Hong Kongโs Sinophone literary field since the 2019 Biennial Awards, where tensions between everyday poetics and politically engaged writing surfaced. He shows how prizes, criticism, and institutions shape poetic…
![[ESSAY] “Poetics Debates and the Shadow of Power in Hong Kongโs Sinophone Literary Field” by Chris Song](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/poetics-debates-and-the-shadow-of-power-in-hong-kongs-sinophone-literary-field.png?w=786)
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[ESSAY] โAssemblage of/as Faith: Max Balatbat Reimagines the Sacred in ‘Sampalataya’” by Jose P. Mojica When one imagines the church, certain images come to mind. Mannerist-style paintings of the Stations of the Cross hang on tiled walls. Sunrays brim with…
![[ESSAY] โAssemblage of/as Faith: Max Balatbat Reimagines the Sacred in ‘Sampalataya'” by Jose P. Mojica](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/sampalataya-max-balatbat.png?w=1024)
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Editor’s note: We are delighted to present an essay by the distinguished translator Howard Goldblatt, whose work has been instrumental in introducing modern Chinese fiction to English-speaking readers. In his essay, Goldblatt reflects on his translation of Liang Xiaoshengโs My…
![[MY DESTINY] “Me and ๐๐ฆ ๐ท๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐ฆ” by Howard Goldblatt](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/howard-goldblatt-my-destiny-and-me-for-cha.png?w=1024)
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[ESSAY] โMeeting the Moment: The Intimacy of LingJiun Wangโs Photographyโ by Julia Merican In Passing (2019 – present)ย I am looking at a photograph by LingJiun Wang. In it, a woman lies on a dark rug, which in turn rests…
![[ESSAY] โMeeting the Moment: The Intimacy of LingJiun Wangโs Photographyโ by Julia Merican](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/in-passing-2019-present.png?w=1024)
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Editor’s note: Through a sequence of transient homes across Singapore and Malaysia, Sia Ling Ee’s essay โTo All the Homes Iโd Known Beforeโ traces a childhood shaped by precarity, familial strain, and longing for stability. Contrasted with her husbandโs rooted…
![[ESSAY] โTo All the Homes Iโd Known Beforeโ by Sia Ling Ee](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/pic-1-amk-rental-flat.jpeg?w=1024)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS Editor’s note: Qinxian Bonnie Ran’s essay examines Amitav Ghosh’s incorporation of Cantonese into English in River of Smoke. She argues that the novel’s multilingual Fanqui City creates a space where economic…
![[ESSAY] “Canton and Cantonese in Amitav Ghoshโs ๐
๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐” by Qinxian Bonnie Ran](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/river-of-smoke_cha.jpg?w=990)
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่ถ FIRST IMPRESSIONS ่ถ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] โSleep, Baby, Oh Donโt You Sleep: Thailandโs Northeast in Apichatpong Weerasethakulโs Cemetery of Splendour and Thunska Pansittivorakulโs Isan Odysseyโ by Peixuan Xie โ Apichatpong Weerasethakul (director), Cemetery of Splendour, 2015.…
![[ESSAY] โSleep, Baby, Oh Donโt You Sleep: Thailandโs Northeast in Apichatpong Weerasethakulโs ๐ถ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ข๐ and Thunska Pansittivorakulโs ๐ผ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฆ๐ ๐ ๐๐ฆโ by Peixuan Xie](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/apichatpong-weerasethakuls-cemetery-of-splendour-and-thunska-pansittivorakuls-isan-odyssey.png?w=1024)
Cha 