Author : 蔡造珉
What is it about : The Author of this book, specialised in his study of the legendary author 蒲松齡 (1640-1715) who lived between the Ming (明) and the Qing Dynasty (清朝). In particular, the Author's research work focused on one of the great novels, on par with the four all-time-Great Chinese novels - Strange Tales from a Studio of Leisure (聊齋誌異) which 蒲松齡 collected and penned in the 17th Century - most of the tales and fables have been folklore for years, these ranged from tree spirits, flower goddess, deity, ghosts and fairies stories, to mysteries and fantasies from the Land of Dreams. In this book, the Author selected about 40 tales from the original more than 400 or so, to illustrate the imagination and artistry of 蒲松齡, each tale followed by some amusing related commentary from the Author.
Some thoughts after having read the book : A few of the well known archetypal characters (狐仙,閻王,樹神,花仙) and the other all time favourites tales can be revisited here in this book - 畫皮, 倩女幽魂, 羅刹海市. These tales not only are amusing to read on their own, but the tales have been used to cynically reflect the society and governance of those feudal days - such as cronyism, rigid education regulations, examination system requiring compliance to the Letter of the Rules (no writing out of whimsical flippant wit, no accidental penmanship erring outside strict page margins etc.), and the general faith and superstitious practices of the Chinese in those bygone days - much of which lingered on till these present times. And by the way, for those not initiated in the Chinese culture, the four all-time-Greats are : Journey To The West (西遊記), Romance Of The Three Kingdoms (三國演義), A Dream Of Red Mansions (紅樓夢) and The Outlaws Of The Marsh (水滸傳).
Would I recommend this book to you : A must-read for anyone who wants to understand China, the Chinese and our ways. Also, a great book for those of us wanting to revisit those haunting tales imprinted from childhood, often from watching the relevant famous movies.
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