As you may already know, I'm a translator. Although I also translate from Italian and French, my "official" working languages ​​are English and Chinese (I don't translate much from the latter). That's why I'm very interested in all the literature that comes to us from this language.

The origin of this entry is an Instagram post where I try, in very little space, to give four guidelines for anyone who wants to delve into Chinese literature. The lack of space complicates life, but it is also true that it has forced me to choose the books and authors that I consider truly essential to introduce oneself to this literature. It must also be said that, although it is a choice with which I suppose many experts in the field would agree, some aspects may be more personal (especially the comments I make about one author or another) because, in the end, reader tastes are a very subjective thing.

To facilitate the guide, I have created three large categories. I think they are three fairly clear divisions, designed to make it easier for the reader to choose. I have not gone into much detail in the explanations because on this same blog I already have entries about most writers and books, so I have preferred to provide you with links that will take you to the entries that interest you most and that way we do not load this article with redundant information. Let's go!

Great classics

Books from before the fall of the imperial regime in China, which have had a great influence on their culture and are quoted everywhere. The first two have been made into series and adaptations, and Journey to the West , specifically, is the origin of the Dragon Ball series (no joke: Son Goku = Sun Wukong). They are all great books with great translations into Spanish and, despite their age, they continue to be valid and interesting today:

• Dream in the Red Pavilion , by Cao Xueqin and Gao E
• Journey to the West , by Wu Cheng'en
• Jin Ping Mei , anonymous erotic literature
• The tangerines , by Wu Jingzi

Classics from the first half of the 20th century

From here we change perspective and refer to authors, not specific books: we enter times when writers diversify their production and we have several books to choose from in each case. We will therefore talk about three of the main authors of the first half of the 20th century. They experienced the change of regime in China and the renewal of literary genres, to the point that the first, Lu Xun, is considered the father of modern Chinese literature. All three have their own entry on this blog, so I leave you the link and some book suggestions:

• Lu Xun : Diary of a Madman and Other Stories (1984 Editions)
• Lao She : Cat Country (dystopian sci-fi), Mr. Ma and Son (neither is in Catalan or Spanish)
• Ba Jin : Family , Cold Nights (both in Vienna Circle)

Essential contemporaries

The first two in this category have enough quality, variety and production to be noble: Yan Lianke is more formal (although she also writes stories that can reach the absurd), while Yu is more "hooligan" and has a great sense of humor. Yiyun Li is wonderful and writes in English from the diaspora (and I think she shines especially with her stories), while Bi Feiyu is a shame that she doesn't publish more and that she isn't translated much into Catalan or Spanish. I also include Can Xue, who has just landed on the literary market in our country: pure surrealism not suitable for all tastes. Finally, I close the list with the revelation of recent times in Catalan: Wu Ming-yi, representative of Taiwanese literature.

• Yan Lianke : The Dream of the Ding People (The Other Herbs), Chronicle of an Explosion (@automatica_editorial)
• Yu Hua : The Past and the Punishments (The Weeds), Brothers (Seix Barral)
• Yiyun Li : Golden Boy, Emerald Girl (Bromera), In Nature Things Simply Grow (L'altra Editorial)
• Bi Feiyu : Trois soeurs (I think in Spanish it would be Las feroces hermanas Wang , but it is not a direct translation from Chinese)
• Can Xue : The Ballad of the Mountain Birds (Gata maula), Red Leaves (Aristas Martínez)
• Wu Ming-yi : The Man with Compound Eyes , The Land of Bitter Rain (both with Chronos Publishing)

And that's it (for now)

As I said at the beginning, the list could be longer: this is just a small taste for anyone who wants to enter the wonderful world of Chinese and Sinophone literature. On the other hand, I am not an academic on the subject, so what is here is not going to mass either. Take it as a small personal contribution to the attempt to spread this literature in our country. If you are curious about a specific author, do not hesitate to put it in the comments (this way it helps us all) or send me a direct email (if you have more personal questions).