Sunday, April 15, 2018

Jin Yong Getting Attention from American Readers!


I'm glad that my favorite author of all times - Jin Yong - is finally getting the attention of American readers with the launch of A Hero Born. This is the first of a 12-volume translation of his popular "Legends of the Condor Heroes Trilogy" ("射鵰英雄傳", "神鵰俠侶", "倚天屠龍記").

This New Yorker's article tells Jin Yong's legend:

https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-...

I read most of Jin Yong's wuxia novels in my childhood and based on my memory, the ones I liked best were "書劍恩仇錄" (The Book and the Sword) set in Qianlong Emperor's reign, and "天龍八部" (there is no English translation yet, and the tentative English title is "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils") set in Southern Song dynasty. In the latter novel, the character that I remember most vividly is a prince named 段譽 from the Kingdom of Dali (大理國, in present-day Dali, Yunnan), whose special martial arts skill is termed "凌波微步" ("mini-steps on waves").

The novels by this literary icon from Hong Kong have long since ignited my interest in Chinese history and inspired me to write historical fiction set in ancient China.

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