Category: First Impressions
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Hungry as a Ghost: Compassion and Cruelty in From the Diary of Madame Mao” by Marsha McDonald All entries in Cha on Madame Mao. María Teresa Ogliastri (author), Yvette…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Hungry as a Ghost: Compassion and Cruelty in 𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐷𝑖𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑀𝑎𝑑𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑀𝑎𝑜” by Marsha McDonald](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/from-the-diary-of-madame-mao.jpg?w=971)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Yuki Tanada’s One Million Yen Girl: On Shame, Solitude, and Starting Over” by Anna Moon Yuki Tanada (director). One Million Yen Girl, 2008. 121 min. The artistry of One…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Yuki Tanada’s 𝑂𝑛𝑒 𝑀𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑌𝑒𝑛 𝐺𝑖𝑟𝑙: On Shame, Solitude, and Starting Over” by Anna Moon](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/yuki-tanada-director.-one-million-yen-girl-.jpg?w=600)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Neither Leaving nor Staying: The Limbo of KEFF’s Taipei Suicide Story” by Anna Moon KEFF (director). Taipei Suicide Story 安眠旅舍, 2020. 45 min. KEFF showed us a room with…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Neither Leaving nor Staying: The Limbo of KEFF’s 𝑇𝑎𝑖𝑝𝑒𝑖 𝑆𝑢𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦” by Anna Moon](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/fe77dba67200a355a41381460edbb9edaed989b78c9a45e287fdbf6eae171872.jpg?w=1024)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Anselm Chan’s The Last Dance: The Way We Grieve as Hong Kongers” by Stella Kwok Anselm Chan (director). The Last Dance, 2024. 126 min. What happens when two generations…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Anselm Chan’s 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐿𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝐷𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒: The Way We Grieve as Hong Kongers”by Stella Kwok](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/e7a0b4c2b7e59cb0e78d84-2.jpeg?w=452)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “The Many-Headed Dragon: Myth, History, and The Chronicles of Japan” by Marsha McDonald All entries in Chaon The Chronicles of Japan Matthieu Felt (translator). The Chronicles of Japan—Volume I:…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “The Many-Headed Dragon: Myth, History, and 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐶ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑖𝑐𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝐽𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑛” by Marsha McDonald](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/71mw8p3wrll._sl1500_.jpg?w=993)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Our Land: What Hero Still Understands About the Price of a Country” by Zubair Mahar Zhang Yimou (director). Hero, 2002. 99 min. I was fifteen, and I had come…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Our Land: What 𝐻𝑒𝑟𝑜 Still Understands About the Price of a Country” by Zubair Mahar](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/hero-film-1.jpg?w=509)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Ancient Fears, Modern Horrors: Sinophagia: A Celebration of Chinese Horror“ by Jennifer Eagleton Xueting Christine Ni (translator and editor), Sinophagia: A Celebration of Chinese Horror, Solaris, 2024. 496 pgs.…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Ancient Fears, Modern Horrors: 𝑆𝑖𝑛𝑜𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑎: 𝐴 𝐶𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑓 𝐶ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝐻𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑜𝑟” by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/sinophagia-a-celebration-of-chinese-horror-xueting-christine-ni-translator-and-editor-solaris-2024.jpg?w=970)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Christopher Cheung’s Very Vancouver: A City in Everyday Voices” by Raymond K. Nakamura Christopher Cheung. Very Vancouver: Uncovering the Soul of a West Coast City, ECW Press, 2026. 328…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Christopher Cheung’s 𝑉𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑉𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑣𝑒𝑟: A City in Everyday Voices” by Raymond K. Nakamura](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/very-vancouver-uncovering-the-soul-of-a-west-coast-city.jpg?w=971)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Old Anklets, Modern Cages: What Pakeezah Still Gets Right About Being an Indian Woman” by Swapna Sanchita Kamal Amrohi (director). Pakeezah (Pure One), 1972. 147 min. There are films…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Old Anklets, Modern Cages: What 𝑃𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑒𝑧𝑎ℎ Still Gets Right About Being an Indian Woman” by Swapna Sanchita](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/kamal-amrohi-director.-pakeezah-pure-one-.jpg?w=750)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Resurrecting the Memories of the Chinese Passengers on the Titanic: Steven Schwankert’s The Untold Story of the Titanic’s Chinese Survivors” by Susan Blumberg-Kason Click HERE to read more about…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Resurrecting the Memories of the Chinese Passengers on the 𝑇𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑐: Steven Schwankert’s 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑈𝑛𝑡𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑇𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑐’𝑠 𝐶ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑒 𝑆𝑢𝑟𝑣𝑖𝑣𝑜𝑟𝑠” by Susan Blumberg-Kason](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/steven-schwankert-the-six-the-untold-story-of-the-titanics-chinese-survivors-1.jpg?w=988)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Living and Dying in Fung Hon Shing’s Life (cycle) of the Hong Kong Newt” by Vanessa Winghei Yeung Fung Hon Shing (director). Life (cycle) of the Hong Kong Newt…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Living and Dying in Fung Hon Shing’s 𝐿𝑖𝑓𝑒 (𝑐𝑦𝑐𝑙𝑒) 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐻𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝐾𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑁𝑒𝑤𝑡” by Vanessa Winghei Yeung](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/e4b880e7949fe89e88e591bd.jpg?w=707)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “On the Horizon: Xu Xi’s Hong Kong Across Three Decades” by Jonathan Han Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Horizon Hong Kong. Xu Xi. Horizon Hong Kong: Selected Stories, Gaudy…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “On the Horizon: Xu Xi’s Hong Kong Across Three Decades” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/horizonhongkong122925.webp?w=1000)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “The Beauty of Becoming: Farzana Doctor’s The Beauty of Us” by Hana Kim Farzana Doctor. The Beauty of Us, ECW Press, 2024. 304 pgs. Last year, I wrote about…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “The Beauty of Becoming: Farzana Doctor’s 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐵𝑒𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑈𝑠” by Hana Kim](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/farzana-doctor.jpg?w=971)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between Branding and Belonging: Re-Imagining Creative Cities in Twenty-First Century Asia” by Suyin Haynes Xin Gu, Michael Kho Lim, and Justin O’Connor (editors). Re-Imagining Creative Cities in Twenty-First Century Asia, Springer,…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between Branding and Belonging: 𝑅𝑒-𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐶𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝐶𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑇𝑤𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑦-𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝐶𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑦 𝐴𝑠𝑖𝑎” by Suyin Haynes](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/xin-gu-michael-kho-lim-and-justin-oconnor-editors.-re-imagining-creative-cities-in-twenty-first-century-asia.jpg?w=901)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Hong Kong, Then and Now, Through the Eyes of Simon Elegant” by Susan Blumberg-Kason Simon Elegant. City on Fire: A Novel of Hong Kong, Pegasus Crime, 2026. 288 pgs.…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Hong Kong, Then and Now, Through the Eyes of Simon Elegant” by Susan Blumberg-Kason](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/simon-elegant.-city-on-fire.jpg?w=989)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Borrowed Strength: Longman Leung’s Cold War 1994” by Jonathan Han Longman Leung (director). Cold War 1994, 2026. 123 min. Prequels make for demanding films. They demand a connection to…
![[FIRST IMPRESIONS] “Borrowed Strength: Longman Leung’s 𝐶𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝑊𝑎𝑟 1994” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/https-mubi.comenfrfilmscold-war-1994.webp?w=1024)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between the Libretto and the Lion Rock: Bizet’s Carmen in Hong Kong” by Jonathan Han Warren Mok (producer) and Jia Ding (director). Bizet’s Carmen, Opera Hong Kong, 2026. Hong…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between the Libretto and the Lion Rock: 𝐵𝑖𝑧𝑒𝑡’𝑠 𝐶𝑎𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑛 in Hong Kong” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/georges-bizets-carmen-is-often-hailed-as-the-opera-for-everyone.jpg?w=1024)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “On Breathing Space: Sound, Memory, and the Quiet Weight of Francis Catedral’s My Third Home” by Nur Hasanah Francis Catedral (director), Rumah Ketigaku (My Third Home), 2025. 21 min.…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “On Breathing Space: Sound, Memory, and the Quiet Weight of Francis Catedral’s 𝑀𝑦 𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑟𝑑 𝐻𝑜𝑚𝑒” by Nur Hasanah](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/rumahketigakuposterupdatedtitlev4.webp?w=1024)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “History and Anachronism in Christopher Smith’s Samurai with Telephones” by Raymond K. Nakamura Christopher Smith, Samurai with Telephones: Anachronism in Japanese Literature, University of Michigan Press, 2024. 242 pgs.…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “History and Anachronism in Christopher Smith’s 𝑆𝑎𝑚𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑖 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑇𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑝ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑠” by Raymond K. Nakamura](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/christopher-smiths-samurai-with-telephones.jpg?w=1000)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Pains, Survival, and Self-Publishing: Gurpreet Kaur Khosa’s Pain & Other Inheritances” by Michael Tsang Gurpreet Kaur Khosa. Pain & Other Inheritances, BookLeaf Publishing, 2025. 50 pgs. This collection stands…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Pains, Survival, and Self-Publishing: Gurpreet Kaur Khosa’s 𝑃𝑎𝑖𝑛 & 𝑂𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝐼𝑛ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒𝑠” by Michael Tsang](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/pain-other-inheritances.jpg?w=850)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Terao Tetsuya’s Spent Bullets: Alienation and Intimacy in Silicon Valley’s Taiwanese Diaspora” by Jennifer Eagleton Terao Tetsuya (author), Kevin Wang (translator). Spent Bullets, HarperCollins, 2025. 208 pgs. Set in…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Terao Tetsuya’s 𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐵𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑠: Alienation and Intimacy in Silicon Valley’s Taiwanese Diaspora” by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/spent-bullets-hardcover-e28093-october-14-2025-by-terao-tetsuya-author-kevin-wang.jpg?w=987)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “For Novice and Expert: Jeffrey Wasserstrom’s Everything You Wanted to Know About China (But Were Afraid to Ask)” by Susan Blumberg-Kason Click HERE to read ALL entries in Chaon…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “For Novice and Expert: Jeffrey Wasserstrom’s 𝐸𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑌𝑜𝑢 𝑊𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝐾𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝐴𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝐶ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑎 (𝐵𝑢𝑡 𝑊𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝐴𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝐴𝑠𝑘)” by Susan Blumberg-Kason](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about-china-.jpg?w=936)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Understanding China Beyond the Headlines: Jeffrey Wasserstrom’s Everything You Wanted to Know About China” by Jennifer Eagleton Click HERE to read ALL entries in Chaon Everything You Wanted to…
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[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Jack Ng’s 𝑁𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝐾𝑖𝑛𝑔: Elegy for a Vanishing East Tsim Sha Tsui” by Jonathan Han
茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Jack Ng’s Night King: Elegy for a Vanishing East Tsim Sha Tsui” by Jonathan Han Jack Ng (director). Night King, 2026. 132 min. Growing up, East Tsim Sha Tsui…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Jack Ng’s 𝑁𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝐾𝑖𝑛𝑔: Elegy for a Vanishing East Tsim Sha Tsui” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/3333.webp?w=1024)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Hope and Despair in Post War Japan: Akira Kurosawa’s One Wonderful Sunday” by Jeremiah Dutch Akira Kurosawa (director). One Wonderful Sunday, 1947. 108 min. It cannot be said often…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Hope and Despair in Post War Japan: Akira Kurosawa’s 𝑂𝑛𝑒 𝑊𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑓𝑢𝑙 𝑆𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑦” by Jeremiah Dutch](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/https-mubi.comenbefilmsone-wonderful-sunday.jpeg?w=299)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Fragmentation and Repair in Leslie Shimotakahara’s The Breakwater” by Jonathan Han All things Leslie Shimotakahara in Cha. Leslie Shimotakahara, The Breakwater, Cormorant Books, 2026. 350 pgs. Since committing his…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Fragmentation and Repair in Leslie Shimotakahara’s 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐵𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑘𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/the-breakwater.jpg?w=900)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Bearing Witness in Gigi L. Leung’s Everyday Movement” by Rebekah Chan Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Everyday Movement. Gigi L. Leung (author), Jennifer Feeley (translator), Everyday Movement, Riverhead Books. 2026.…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Bearing Witness in Gigi L. Leung’s 𝐸𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑀𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡” by Rebekah Chan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/everyday-movement-by-gigi-l.-leung-translated-by-jennifer-feeley-.jpg?w=993)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “What One ‘Nobody’ Did: On Mr Nobody Against Putin” by Jennifer Eagleton David Borenstein and Pavel Talankin (directors), Mr Nobody Against Putin, 2025. 90 min. Mr Nobody Against Putin…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “What One ‘Nobody’ Did: On 𝑀𝑟 𝑁𝑜𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑦 𝐴𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡 𝑃𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑛” by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/mr-nobody-against-putin.jpg?w=1024)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between Moonlight and Market Prices: Reading Yam Gong” by Jonathan Han Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon Moving a Stone. Yam Gong (author), James Shea and Dorothy Tse (translators), Moving a…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Between Moonlight and Market Prices: Reading Yam Gong” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/moving-a-stone.webp?w=900)
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茶 FIRST IMPRESSIONS 茶 REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Metamorphosis and Memory in Dorothy Tse’s City Like Water” by Jonathan Han Click HERE to read all entries in Chaon City Like Water. Dorothy Tse (author), Natascha Bruce (translator). City Like Water, Graywolf…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Metamorphosis and Memory in Dorothy Tse’s 𝐶𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝐿𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑊𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟” by Jonathan Han](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/city-like-water-dorothy-tse-cha-an-asian-literary-journal.jpg?w=1000)
Cha 