Guest of Lin'an
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Summary
Jing Buhang recreates history with a nonfiction approach, focusing especially on the life stories of seven Southern Song figures. Seven people, seven lifetimes, interwoven into a history of the Southern Song written in blood and tears.
The Northern Song's Bianjing Guest is the cry of a strong nation's heart; the Southern Song's Lin'an Guest is the struggle of a dream to save the nation. Together the two books encompass the three hundred years of the Great Song's suffering and glory.
Guofeng artist Fu Shu created the cover illustration, conveying the unyielding spirit of Southern Song literati.
Lin'an Guest is a collection of historical figures by young writer Jing Buhang, a companion volume to Bianjing Guest. Taking Lin'an, the capital of the Southern Song, as its point of origin, it tells the life stories of seven Southern Song figures: the great artist Emperor Huizong, the peerless talented woman Li Qingzhao, the Great Song's god of war Yue Fei, the restoration-era great poet Lu You, the master of the bold and unconstrained ci school Xin Qiji, the literary hero of the North Yuan Haowen, and the loyal and martyred poet Wen Tianxiang. It focuses in particular on the sense of powerlessness among Southern Song literati and generals after the Jingkang Incident as their homeland's territory was encroached upon and finally swallowed by a powerful northern people, and on their unyielding cries as individual fates were cast into the dark valley of their era.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- General readers interested in Southern Song history and the fates of historical figures
- Readers who enjoy nonfiction historical writing and prefer narrative histories
- Students who wish to understand the atmosphere of the era after the Jingkang Incident from the individual perspectives of literati and generals
- Readers who have read Bianjing Guest and want to read the companion volume in comparison
Not a good fit for
- Professional researchers expecting rigorous academic scholarship and extensive source annotations
- Readers who prefer light entertainment and do not wish to engage with themes of national grief and tragedy
- Systematic learners seeking a complete chronological general history of the Southern Song
Reading tips
- Read chapter by chapter in the order of the figures, or begin with the chapters on the most familiar figures, such as Yue Fei or Li Qingzhao.
- While reading, compare with the relevant figures in Bianjing Guest to appreciate the difference in tone between the Northern Song and Southern Song volumes.
- After finishing each figure, briefly review the period in which they lived to help connect the broader arc of Southern Song history.
About the publisher
Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House is a publisher known for its literary titles, with a catalogue spanning foreign literature, world classics, classical Chinese literature, essays and miscellaneous writings, and mystery and detective fiction. Judging from the more than 1,100 books in the database, the press publishes foreign classics such as Crime and Punishment, Snow Country, The Complete Sherlock Holmes and Letter from an Unknown Woman, as well as Chinese classical and modern literary works including Lu Xun's Wandering and A Madman's Diary and Wu Jingzi's The Scholars. In terms of translators and authors, translations by Cao Guowei and Tan Jinghua appear in its foreign literature titles, and the authors involved include Dostoevsky, Kawabata Yasunari, Conan Doyle and Zweig. Its publishing character lies in introducing Chinese and foreign literary classics side by side, balancing popular and serious works and attending to both readability and literary value. Public information is limited; the above is a brief overview based solely on the books in the database.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 自序 所有目的地，何须抵达
- 宋徽宗 （1082—1135） 头号玩家
- 李清照 （1084—1155） 昨夜雨疏风骤
- 岳飞 （1103—1142） 十二道金牌的宿命
- 陆游 （1125—1210） 铁马冰河梦一场
- 辛弃疾 （1140—1207） 赴青山
- 元好问 （1190—1257） 生存还是毁灭
- 文天祥 （1236—1283） 殉道者
FAQ
What is the relationship between this book and Bianjing Guest?
Can I read it without any background in Southern Song history?
Which seven figures are featured in the book?
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About the author
Jing Buhang is an author about whom limited public information is available. Three works can currently be confirmed, all falling within the category of prose and miscellaneous writings. Representative works include the two-volume set Jing Buhang's Twin New Works: The Guest of Lin'an + The Guest of Bianjing, as well as the separately published The Guest of Lin'an and The Guest of Bianjing. Judging from the titles, both works take Song dynasty cities as their point of entry: Lin'an and Bianjing were the capitals of the Southern Song and Northern Song respectively, suggesting that the author attends to the human atmosphere and everyday experience of historic cities. The works unfold in a prose style that combines narrative with the feel of personal essays, forging connections between historical settings and individual reflection. Since details of the author's life, education, and nationality have not been made public, readers' understanding of the author comes mainly from the works themselves. The three existing works already begin to reveal a writing direction centered on ancient capitals, with plain language and attention to detail and feeling, suitable for readers interested in Song dynasty urban life and in prose essays.
