The Phoenix Zither

Name: The Phoenix Zither
ISBN: 9787559846624

Liu XinglongGuangxi Normal University Press · ChinaApr 2022

4.0

Word count: 241K words
Chapters: 54
ISBN: 9787559846624

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Summary

This collection comprises five novellas—The Phoenix Zither, The Village Party Secretary, Folk Songs and the Wolf, See You in Hong Kong, and City Eyeshadow—presenting both the rural world, with issues such as education in impoverished villages and problems of grassroots rural cadres, and the urban world, with complex workplace relationships, sketching a panorama of society and the lives of ordinary people. The Phoenix Zither depicts the work and living conditions of a group of community-hired teachers at a mountain village primary school, truthfully reflecting the backwardness of education in China's remote mountain areas and the hardship of these teachers' lives, highly praising their diligent dedication and unassuming spirit—a hymn to the lives of rural teachers... The narrative is rigorous, the storytelling strong, the plot suspenseful, and the language richly regional, making the book hard to put down.

Editor's review

Liu Xinglong's The Phoenix Zither is a realistic work rooted in China's rural reality, emotionally deep yet restrained. Set mainly at Jieling Primary School, a remote mountain village school, the novel revolves around the daily lives and spiritual predicaments of several community-hired teachers—Zhang Yingcai, Sun Sihai, Deng Youmi, and others. With his characteristic fine, cool-eyed brushwork, Liu Xinglong depicts the perseverance, struggles, hopes, and glimmers of human warmth of these "night watchmen" of rural education under extremely harsh material conditions. The title "Phoenix Zither" serves as a central image: it is a real instrument that links the characters' emotions and memories, and also a symbol of the spiritual aspiration and dignity of life that still yearn to sound forth from barren soil.

The book's value goes far beyond telling a story of dedication. Its deeper significance lies in its almost plain narrative, which peels back the complex textures of rural education and rural China in a particular historical period, revealing the eternal tensions between ideal and reality, individual and collective, staying and leaving. The author avoids deliberate sentimentality; through abundant solid detail and the subtle inner fluctuations of his characters, he lets warmth shine through bitterness and the sublime emerge from the ordinary. This literary treatment raises the work above simple moral praise and gives it more enduring, universal value as an exploration of human nature. For today's readers, The Phoenix Zither is not only a window onto history but also a mirror reflecting many current social issues; thoughts about educational resources, urban-rural disparities, and individual self-realization are continually stirred as one reads. This edition from Guangxi Normal University Press is finely produced and merits collecting and rereading.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in contemporary Chinese rural literature and social change
Educators and those concerned with rural education issues
Literature lovers who appreciate a steady, realistic narrative style rich in emotional tension
Readers who hope to understand the inner world of ordinary people in a particular historical period through fiction

Not a good fit for

Entertainment-oriented readers seeking strong plot, fast pace, or fantasy
Readers who feel no resonance at all with rural themes and realistic style

Reading tips

Read alongside other works by Liu Xinglong, such as The Sky Dwellers (the sequel to The Phoenix Zither), for a more complete narrative experience and greater historical depth.
While reading, pay attention to descriptions of the environment and objects (such as the mountains, snowstorms, and the phoenix zither), which often serve as important footnotes to the characters' moods and fates.
Read in a relatively quiet setting; this work requires some patience and immersion to appreciate the surging emotional undercurrents and intellectual weight beneath its words.

About the publisher

Guangxi Normal University Press China · Founded in 1986

Guangxi Normal University Press is a publisher known for literature, foreign literature and history titles. Its 1,175 books in the database show a solid accumulation in classics and prose collections, including foreign literary works such as Les Fleurs du mal: Annotated Poems of Baudelaire, Snow Country, Dubliners and The Wild Palms, as well as modern prose compilations like The Complete Prose of Zhou Zuoren. History and philosophy also hold a notable share, with titles such as Running Dogs: Clerks and Runners in Qing County Yamen and The History and Thought of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom reflecting attention to Qing local administration and modern history. In art literature there is the 16-volume Ten Bamboo Studio Painting and Calligraphy Manual. Its author resources include foreign writers Charles Baudelaire and Yasunari Kawabata, translators and annotators Liu Nanqi and Zou Bo, and scholars such as Zhong Shuhe, Bradly W. Reed and You Chenjun. As public information is limited, this characterization is based only on the books in the database, which together present a profile balancing Chinese and foreign literary classics with academic works in the humanities and social sciences.

版权信息
凤凰琴
村支书
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民歌与狼
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我们香港见
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城市眼影
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FAQ

What is the relationship between The Phoenix Zither and The Sky Dwellers?

The Sky Dwellers is the sequel to The Phoenix Zither. The story is still set at Jieling Primary School and extends further in time, continuing to tell in depth of the later fates of these community-hired teachers; together the two works form Liu Xinglong's complete chapter on the theme of rural teachers. The Sky Dwellers won the 8th Mao Dun Literature Prize.

Is the book's tone very heavy and sad?

The work does touch on hardship, sacrifice, and predicament, and its overall tone is deep, plain, even somewhat desolate. But Liu Xinglong's writing is restrained; he uncovers human resilience, warmth, and humor amid suffering, and the book has many moments of tenderness and hope rather than unrelieved tragedy.

Can readers without rural life experience understand this book?

Absolutely. Although the setting is a particular region and era, the core themes the novel explores—such as the conflict between ideal and reality, dedication to a profession, emotional bonds between people, and the pursuit of dignity—are universal. The author's excellent character portrayal and detail effectively guide readers to empathize and understand the characters' inner worlds beyond their own specific experience.

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About the author

Liu Xinglong Author · Chinese · 1956

Liu Xinglong, born in 1956 in Huangzhou, Hubei, with ancestral roots in Tuanfeng, is a contemporary Chinese realist writer. In his early years he worked as a water conservancy construction worker and a valve factory laborer, and in 1984 he published his first work, Black Butterfly, Black Butterfly... His writing is rooted in real life, often drawing on rural society and the lives of ordinary people, with plain yet warm prose. His representative works include Fengqin, The Skywalker, and Saint Heaven's Gate; The Skywalker won the 8th Mao Dun Literature Prize, and Carrying Tea to Beijing won the Lu Xun Literature Prize. The library holds 14 of his works, including The Skywalker, Selected Works of Liu Xinglong, Life Is Labor and Benevolence, Drunk in the Autumn Wind, If the Days Ahead Are Long, and Listening for Leaks, commonly categorized as social fiction and classic works. He has served as chairman of the Hubei Provincial Federation of Literary and Art Circles and has long focused on the fate and dignity of ordinary people.