Anchee Min – författare

A revelatory and disturbing portrait of China, this is Anchee Min’s celebrated memoir of growing up in the last years of Mao’s China. As a child, Min was asked to publicly humiliate a teacher; at seventeen, she was sent to work at a labor collective. Forbidden to speak, dress, read, write, or love as she pleased, she found a lifeline in a secret love affair with another woman. Miraculously selected for the film version of one of Madame Mao’s political operas, Min’s life changed overnight. Then Chairman Mao suddenly died, taking with him an entire world. This national bestseller and New York Times Notable Book is exceptional for its candor, its poignancy, its courage, and for its prose which Newsweek calls "as delicate and evocative as a traditional Chinese brush painting."

From the Trade Paperback edition.

To rescue her family from poverty and avoid marrying her slope-shouldered cousin, seventeen-year-old Orchid competes to be one of the Emperor's wives. When she is chosen as a lower-ranking concubine she enters the erotically charged and ritualised Forbidden City. But beneath its immaculate facade lie whispers of murders and ghosts, and the thousands of concubines will stoop to any lengths to bear the Emperor's son. Orchid trains herself in the art of pleasuring a man, bribes her way into the royal bed, and seduces the monarch, drawing the attention of dangerous foes. Little does she know that China will collapse around her, and that she will be its last Empress.

''Empress Orchid is strong on both sexual chicanery and violent conspiracy ... fascinating'' GUARDIAN''An engrossing story ... enhanced by Min''s imaginative power ... Like all good novelists, she implies as much as she says, and her characterisation is subtle and worldly-wise'' GLASGOW HERALD_________________________It is the 19th century, and China is in chaos. One woman will rise from poverty to change its history for ever.To rescue her family from poverty and avoid marrying her slope-shouldered cousin, seventeen-year-old Orchid competes to be one of the Emperor''s wives.When she is chosen as a lower-ranking concubine she enters the erotically charged and ritualised Forbidden City. But beneath its immaculate façade lie whispers of murders and ghosts, and the thousands of concubines will stoop to any lengths to bear the Emperor''s son.Orchid trains herself in the art of pleasuring a man, bribes her way into the royal bed, and seduces the monarch, drawing the attention of dangerous foes. Little does she know that China will collapse around her, and that she will be its last Empress...

At the end of the nineteenth century China is rocked by foreign attacks and local rebellions. The only constant is the power wielded by one woman, Tzu Hsi, also known as Empress Orchid, who must face the perilous condition of her empire and devastating personal losses. In this sequel to the bestselling "Empress Orchid", Anchee Min brings to life one of the most important figures in Chinese history, a very human leader who sacrifices all she has to protect both those she loves and her doomed empire.

This novel, described by the San Francisco Chronicle Book Review as "nothing short of miraculous," is the story of Zebra Wong, a Chinese girl whose pragmatic mind conflicts with her passionate heart; Lion Head, her classmate, whose penchant for romantic intrigue belies his political ambitions, and Katherine, the seductive American with the red lipstick and the wild laugh who teaches them English and other foreign concepts: individualism, sensuality, the Beatles. In Katherine''s classroom, repression and rebellion meet head-on-and the consequences are both tragic and liberating.

In the small southern town of Chin-kiang, two young girls from very different worlds collide and become inseparable companions. Willow is hardened by poverty and fearful for her future; Pearl is the daughter of a Christian missionary who desperately wishes she was Chinese too. Neither could have foreseen the transformation of the little American girl embarrassed by her blonde hair into the Nobel Prize-winning writer and one of China's modern heroines, Pearl S. Buck. When the country erupts in civil war between the Nationalists and the Communists, Pearl and Willow are brutally reminded of their differences. Pearl's family is forced to flee the country and Willow is punished for her loyalty to her ‘cultural imperialist' friend. And yet, in the face of everything that threatens to tear them apart, the paths of these two women remain intimately entwined.

In the small southern town of Chin-kiang, two young girls from very different worlds collide and become inseparable companions. Willow is hardened by poverty and fearful for her future; Pearl is the daughter of a Christian missionary who desperately wishes she was Chinese too. Neither could have foreseen the transformation of the little American girl embarrassed by her blonde hair into the Nobel Prize-winning writer and one of China''s modern heroines, Pearl S. Buck. When the country erupts in civil war between the Nationalists and the Communists, Pearl and Willow are brutally reminded of their differences. Pearl''s family is forced to flee the country and Willow is punished for her loyalty to her ''cultural imperialist'' friend. And yet, in the face of everything that threatens to tear them apart, the paths of these two women remain intimately entwined.

''Vivid and entertaining ... this is history as it plays upon the emotions. Empires crumble, hearts are broken'' THE TIMESFrom the bestselling author of Red Azalea comes the much-anticipated sequel to Empress OrchidAt the end of the nineteenth century China is rocked by foreign attacks and local rebellions. The only constant is the power wielded by one woman, Tzu Hsi, also known as Empress Orchid, who must face the perilous condition of her empire and devastating personal losses.In this sequel to the bestselling Empress Orchid, Anchee Min brings to life one of the most important figures in Chinese history, a very human leader who sacrifices all she has to protect both those she loves and her doomed empire.

''Full of sorrow and humour ... extraordinary'' NEW YORK TIMES''Reckless and thrilling ... Min outwits and outworks the Western system, and this book is part underdog thriller as she claws her way to love and success'' THE TIMESThe sequel to Anchee Min''s internationally bestselling memoir, Red Azalea, in which she leaves China for America, and struggles to find her way, her voice and her loveIn 1994, Anchee Min published Red Azalea, a memoir of growing up during the violent trauma of the Cultural Revolution. It became an international bestseller. Twenty years later, Min returns to give us the next chapter, as she moves from the shocking deprivations of her homeland to the sudden bounty of the promised land of America, without language, money or a clear path.With the help of actress Joan Chen, Anchee applies to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She shows a portfolio of her self-taught brush paintings at the US consulate and is granted an entry visa, but once in America, Anchee finds she is on her own, forced to survive by her wits and indomitable spirit.She teaches herself English by watching Sesame Street, has five jobs at once, sleeps in unheated rooms in desolate neighbourhoods. As well as her struggle to understand her new country – the food, the warm showers – Anchee suffers devastating violence, collapses from exhaustion, marries poorly and divorces after giving birth to her daughter, Lauryann. Despite her tough, lonely journey, Anchee finds that it is Lauryann who will save her and root her, finally, in America.As a child, Anchee understood herself as a mere ''bolt on the great machine that was Communism''; in America she learns how to succeed in a radically different culture despite bitter hardships and countless setbacks. The Cooked Seed is an unforgettable story.

'Full of sorrow and humour ... extraordinary' NEW YORK TIMES'Reckless and thrilling ... Min outwits and outworks the Western system, and this book is part underdog thriller as she claws her way to love and success' THE TIMESThe sequel to Anchee Min's internationally bestselling memoir, Red Azalea, in which she leaves China for America, and struggles to find her way, her voice and her loveIn 1994, Anchee Min published Red Azalea, a memoir of growing up during the violent trauma of the Cultural Revolution. It became an international bestseller. Twenty years later, Min returns to give us the next chapter, as she moves from the shocking deprivations of her homeland to the sudden bounty of the promised land of America, without language, money or a clear path.With the help of actress Joan Chen, Anchee applies to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She shows a portfolio of her self-taught brush paintings at the US consulate and is granted an entry visa, but once in America, Anchee finds she is on her own, forced to survive by her wits and indomitable spirit.She teaches herself English by watching Sesame Street, has five jobs at once, sleeps in unheated rooms in desolate neighbourhoods. As well as her struggle to understand her new country – the food, the warm showers – Anchee suffers devastating violence, collapses from exhaustion, marries poorly and divorces after giving birth to her daughter, Lauryann. Despite her tough, lonely journey, Anchee finds that it is Lauryann who will save her and root her, finally, in America.As a child, Anchee understood herself as a mere ‘bolt on the great machine that was Communism’; in America she learns how to succeed in a radically different culture despite bitter hardships and countless setbacks. The Cooked Seed is an unforgettable story.

The acclaimed memoir from the bestselling author of Empress Orchid''Historically remarkable ... intensely moving'' SUNDAY TIMES''The book sings. It is a small masterpiece'' VOGUEBorn into a devoutly Maoist family in 1950s Shanghai and forced to work on a communal farm from the age of seventeen, Anchee Min found herself in an alienating and hostile political climate, where her only friendships were perilous and intense.Both candid and touching, this compelling memoir documents her isolation and illicit love against the backdrop of China''s Cultural Revolution. From her coming of age in the Red Guard to her recruitment into Madame Mao''s burgeoning industry of propaganda movies, Red Azalea explores the secret sensuality of a repressive society with elegance and honesty.

It is the end of the nineteenth century and China is riding on the crest of great change, but for nine-year-old Willow, the only child of a destitute family in the small southern town of Chin-kiang, nothing ever seems to change. Until the day she meets Pearl, the eldest daughter of a zealous American missionary.Pearl is head-strong, independent and fiercely intelligent, and will grow up to be Pearl S Buck, the Pulitzer- and Nobel Prize-winning writer and humanitarian activist, but for now all Willow knows is that she has never met anyone like her in all her life. From the start the two are thick as thieves, but when the Boxer Rebellion rocks the nation, Pearl''s family is forced to leave China to flee religious persecution. As the twentieth century unfolds in all its turmoil, through right-wing military coups and Mao''s Red Revolution, through bad marriages and broken dreams, the two girls cling to their lifelong friendship across the sea.In this ambitious and moving new novel, Anchee Min, acclaimed author of Empress Orchid and Red Azalea, brings to life a courageous and passionate woman who loved the country of her childhood and who has been hailed in China as a modern heroine.

In 1994, Anchee Min made her literary debut with a memoir of growing up in China during the violent trauma of the Cultural Revolution. Red Azalea became an international bestseller and propelled her career as a successful, critically acclaimed author. Twenty years later, Min returns to the story of her own life to give us the next chapter, an immigrant story that takes her from the shocking deprivations of her homeland to the sudden bounty of the promised land of America, without language, money, or a clear path. It is a hard and lonely road. She teaches herself English by watching Sesame Street, keeps herself afloat working five jobs at once, lives in unheated rooms, suffers rape, collapses from exhaustion, marries poorly and divorces.But she also gives birth to her daughter, Lauryann, who will inspire her and finally root her in her new country. Min''s eventual successes-her writing career, a daughter at Stanford, a second husband she loves-are remarkable, but it is her struggle throughout toward genuine selfhood that elevates this dramatic, classic immigrant story to something powerfully universal.

With his smooth, warm, ruddy face which radiated light in all directions, Chairman Mao Zedong was a fixture in Chinese propaganda posters produced between the birth of the People’s Republic in 1949 and the early 1980s. Chairman Mao, portrayed as a stoic superhero (aka the Great Teacher, the Great Leader, the Great Helmsman, the Supreme Commander), appeared in all kinds of situations (inspecting factories, smoking a cigarette with peasant workers, standing by the Yangzi River in a bathrobe, presiding over the bow of a ship, or floating over a sea of red flags), flanked by strong, healthy, ageless men and “masculinized” women and children wearing baggy, sexless, drab clothing. The goal of each poster was to show the Chinese people what sort of behavior was considered morally correct and how great the future of Communist China would be if everyone followed the same path toward utopia by uniting together. This book brings together a selection of colorful propaganda artworks and cultural artifacts of Chinese propaganda posters, many of which are now extremely rare.

With his smooth, warm, ruddy face which radiated light in all directions, Chairman Mao Zedong was a fixture in Chinese propaganda posters produced between the birth of the People’s Republic in 1949 and the early 1980s. Chairman Mao, portrayed as a stoic superhero (aka the Great Teacher, the Great Leader, the Great Helmsman, the Supreme Commander), appeared in all kinds of situations (inspecting factories, smoking a cigarette with peasant workers, standing by the Yangzi River in a bathrobe, presiding over the bow of a ship, or floating over a sea of red flags), flanked by strong, healthy, ageless men and “masculinized” women and children wearing baggy, sexless, drab clothing. The goal of each poster was to show the Chinese people what sort of behavior was considered morally correct and how great the future of Communist China would be if everyone followed the same path toward utopia by uniting together. This book brings together a selection of colorful propaganda artworks and cultural artifacts from Max Gottschalk’s vast collection of Chinese propaganda posters, many of which are now extremely rare.

'Parel van China' vertelt het indrukwekkende verhaal van twee meisjes uit compleet verschillende families in China die niet zonder elkaar kunnen. Wilg groeit op in een arme familie op het platteland en de ouders van Pearl zijn christelijke missionarissen. Naarmate ze ouder worden, gaat Wilg op in het maoisme, terwijl Pearl een Nobelprijs wint voor haar schrijftalent. Hun vriendschap wordt op de proef gesteld wanneer de burgeroorlog uitbreekt en Pearl het land uit wordt gezet. Zelfs Wilg, een voorbeeldige communist, wordt gestraft voor haar vriendschap met Pearl. Zal de hechte vriendschap tussen de twee vrouwen standhouden, ondanks de pijn, oorlog en gevangenschap?

Hoe werd de dochter van een verrader de nieuwe nationale held van de communistische partij?Wanneer de vader van Wilde Gember als verrader wordt beschouwd, neemt haar leven een tragische wending. Vastbesloten klemt ze zich vast aan het Maoisme om de eer van haar familie te herstellen. Uiteindelijk krijgt ze zelfs nationale bekendheid als rolmodel in de propaganda van de partij. Alles gaat voor de wind, wanneer ze ook nog eens de liefde vindt. Maar gaat dat wel samen? Liefde voor een jongeman en voor je vaderland?

De laatste keizerin van China, Orchidee, ging de boeken in als wreed en meedogenloos, maar schrijfster Anchee Min laat een andere kant van de sterke vrouw zien in deze prachtige historische roman. Orchidee wordt in de negentiende eeuw noodgedwongen keizerin, omdat haar zoon amper zeven jaar is als het zijn beurt is om de troon te bestijgen. In een wereld vol machtige mannen en terwijl het land op losse schroeven staat, probeert Orchidee tegen wil en dank haar geliefde land van de ondergang te redden. Zal ze ooit gerespecteerd worden zoals haar man dat was?

"e;Keizerin Orchidee"e; van Anchee Min is een historische roman die het fascinerende verhaal vertelt van Tzu Hsi, een zeventienjarige vrouw van adellijke afkomst, die als concubine de Verboden Stad betreedt voor keizer Hsien Feng. Met haar scherpe intelligentie en charme weet Orchidee zich te onderscheiden te midden van de complexe hofintriges. Haar positie wordt aanzienlijk versterkt wanneer ze de enige zoon van de keizer baart. De roman volgt haar strijd om macht en invloed te verwerven en te behouden in een strikt geregeerde mannenwereld, terwijl de Qing-dynastie afbrokkelt en grote veranderingen het rijk bedreigen. Het is een verhaal over overleving, ambitie en de zoektocht naar controle.

Hoe is het om als jong meisje op te groeien in het communistische China? In 'Rode Azalea' vertelt Anchee Min over haar bijzondere jeugd als modelcommunist. Van jongs af aan wordt Min grootgebracht met de leer van Mao Zedong en op zeventienjarige leeftijd, als oudste kind in de familie, werkt ze als soldaat bij de Kleine Rode Brigade. Ondanks de harde leefomstandigheden, wordt zij uitgekozen om een grote rol te spelen in een propagandafilm. Plotseling begeeft ze zich in de luxe filmwereld, maar ook die is zwaar en competitief. Hoe kijkt Anchee zelf terug op haar levensverhaal? Ontdek het in haar indrukwekkende autobiografie 'Rode Azalea' en leer over de fascinerende Culturele Revolutie en het communisme in China.