China Chat: Bird Talk and Other Stories by Xu Xu
Xu Xu 徐訏 (1908-1980) was one of the most widely read Chinese authors of the twentieth century. His popular urban gothic tales, his exotic spy fiction, and his quasi-existentialist love stories full of nostalgia and melancholy offer today’s readers an unusual glimpse into China’s turbulent twentieth century.

In this China Chat, Prof. Green will discuss Xu Xu's literary career that spanned a period of some thirty years, from the 1930s until the 1960s. He will then read from his translations of some of Xu Xu’s most representative short fictions from prewar Shanghai and postwar Hong Kong and Taiwan. His talk will be followed by a Q&A.
When: Thursday, February 24, 2022, 7 - 8pm

Where: Zoom Webinar

Cost: Free, and open to the public -- register below
Frederik H. Green is associate professor of Chinese at San Francisco State University. He holds a BA in Chinese Studies from Cambridge University and a PhD in Chinese literature from Yale University. He has published widely on the literature and culture of 20th-century China. Frederik’s long-time fascination with the fiction of Xu Xu culminated in last year's publication of Bird Talk and Other Stories by Xu Xu: Modern Tales of a Chinese Romantic (Stone Bridge Press), a translation and study of representative works by this unusual Chinese author. Originally a native of northern Germany, Frederik now resides in San Francisco.
Established in 1980, the mission of the Northwest China Council is to promote a greater understanding of Chinese history, culture, business, and contemporary affairs.