{"title":"Dai Sijie","description":"\u003cp\u003eDai Sijie is a celebrated Franco-Chinese author and filmmaker, renowned for his poignant and insightful storytelling. His works, often set against the backdrop of China's Cultural Revolution, explore themes of love, loss, and the enduring power of literature. Dai's unique perspective is shaped by his personal experiences, having been sent to a Chinese \"re-education\" camp during his youth, which profoundly influences his narratives.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe collection features engaging titles such as \u003cem\u003eBalzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress\u003c\/em\u003e, an internationally acclaimed novel that intertwines cultural history with personal discovery. The novel captures the journey of two young boys amidst China's political chaos as they stumble upon forbidden Western literature, sparking transformative experiences. Dai Sijie adeptly combines gentle humour and deep emotional resonance, making his books a must-read for fans of general fiction.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIf you're drawn to stories that offer a blend of historical insight and rich character development, Dai Sijie's works will captivate and inspire your imagination.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"balzac-and-the-little-chinese-seamstress-by-dai-sijie-9780099286431","title":"Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1971, Mao's campaign against the intellectuals is at its height. Our narrator and his best friend, Luo, distinctly unintellectual but guilty of being the sons of doctors, have been sent to a remote mountain village to be 'reeducated'.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe kind of education that takes place among the peasants of Phoenix Mountain involves carting buckets of excrement up and down precipitous, foggy paths, but the two seventeen-year-olds have a violin and their sense of humour to keep them going. Further distraction is provided by the attractive daughter of the local tailor, possessor of a particularly fine pair of feet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTheir true re-education starts, however, when they discover a comrade's hidden stash of classics of great nineteenth-century Western literature - Balzac, Dickens, Dumas, Tolstoy and others, in Chinese translation. They need all their ingenuity to get their hands on the forbidden books, but when they do, their lives are turned upside down. And not only their lives: after listening to their dangerously seductive retellings of Balzac, the Little Seamstress will never be the same again.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWithout betraying the truth of what happened, Dai Sijie transforms the bleak events of China's Cultural Revolution into an enchanting and unexpected story about the resilience of the human spirit and the magical power of great storytelling in \u003cem\u003eBalzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46494457463020,"sku":"9780099286431","price":27.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/8953143482223.jpg?v=1748455816"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/dai-sijie.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}