This Moment cover

This Moment

Rating 3.4
Word count
132K words
Chapters
84
ISBN
9787201124469

Tags

Summary

The 80 pieces collected in This Moment are mainly the author's reading notes on major modern and contemporary Chinese works, along with a few book-related personal essays. Each piece offers a distinctive analysis, objective assessment, and thoughtful reflection on significant modern and contemporary literary works. The book serves as a helpful guide and inspiration for readers seeking a correct understanding of these celebrated works, and to some extent heightens their interest in reading the originals. The pieces are brief and finely crafted, with graceful prose and a touch of philosophical insight, making them suitable for general readers.

Editor's review

At This Moment is an essay collection by Di Yuchao, published by Tianjin People's Publishing House. It is not a novel of dramatic twists and turns but a book of meditations to be savored in quiet. With delicate strokes and deep philosophical reflection, Di Yuchao distills those easily overlooked moments of everyday life—a cloud, a gust of wind, a gaze, a memory—into words, exploring the intricate relationship between time, existence, memory, and the present. The style is plain and restrained, free of ornate diction, yet the unadorned narration carries strong emotional tension and intellectual weight. It guides readers away from the noisy external world toward an observation of the inner self and the essence of life. For an editor, the book's value lies in the literary way it offers to resist the passage of time, reminding us how, in an age of relentless speed, writing and reading can anchor the meaning of "this moment." It is not a book that provides answers but a mirror reflecting each reader's own perceptions and confusions about life. Reading it is more like a quiet conversation with one's inner self.

Who it's for

A good fit for

  • Readers who enjoy contemplation and introspection and savor solitary reading time
  • People sensitive to the details of life, adept at finding beauty and philosophical insight in ordinary things
  • Lovers of prose who appreciate plain, understated Chinese writing rich in tension
  • Urban dwellers weary of a fast-paced life, seeking a moment of tranquility and respite for the soul

Not a good fit for

  • Readers of popular fiction who seek strong plots, fast pacing, and dramatic conflict
  • Utilitarian readers hoping to gain clear methodologies or practical knowledge from a book

Reading tips

  1. Read alone at a quieter time of day (such as early morning or late at night); one or two essays at a time suffice—no need to rush
  2. Keep a pen at hand to mark passages that resonate or provoke thought, and jot down immediate reflections
  3. Do not strive for quick completion or worry about "fully understanding"; better to follow the atmosphere of the words and feel their rhythm and emotional flow

About the publisher

Tianjin People's Publishing House China · Founded in 1950

Tianjin People's Publishing House publishes across such fields as classic works, foreign literature, architecture, social culture and social sciences, with 749 relevant titles in the collection. In the areas of classics and scholarship, works such as Wang Guowei's Renjian Cihua and Fei Xiaotong's From the Soil and Fertility and Reproduction reflect a sustained attention to social culture and classic texts of thought. Architectural books are represented by Liang Sicheng's Annotated Yingzao Fashi and A History of Chinese Architecture, showing an emphasis on architectural heritage and building traditions. In foreign literature, translations of Sholokhov's And Quiet Flows the Don and Tolstoy's War and Peace and The Death of Ivan Ilyich, through the work of translators such as Li Gang and Yu Dawei, form a substantial series of translated works. Overall, the press combines classic texts, scholarly works and fine translations, with a publishing character oriented toward humanistic depth and the dissemination of knowledge.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 第一辑 卧心苦禅
  3. 灵魂的栖居地
  4. 卧心苦禅
  5. 橡树的爱情
  6. 穿西服的徐志摩
  7. 花开雨巷
  8. 生命的两极
  9. 沦陷的婚姻
  10. 1933年的那场雪
  11. 沉静的圣泉
  12. 苍茫之水
  13. 高高的白杨林
  14. 弄堂里的日子
  15. 从未平静的夜晚
  16. 多事之秋
  17. 村民林语堂
  18. 你是否渴望激情
  19. 人生况味寄书衣
  20. 童心不泯
  21. 离我们最近的大师
  22. 人性的花园
  23. 第二辑 且说漂泊
  24. 日常的亲切
  25. 唯爱感天动地
  26. 田野下的真实
  27. 怀念一个村庄
  28. 寂寞的风景
  29. 学习幽默
  30. 竹林的隐喻
  31. 重读精品
  32. 墙之斑驳
  33. 金色记忆
  34. 坚硬的吃
  35. 方便与不方便
  36. 假打与打假
  37. 闲聊“换笔”
  38. 且说漂泊
  39. 现代门客的生存与出路
  40. 住院随想
  41. 杂感三则
  42. 第三辑 落寞槐花
  43. 茶色的茶馆
  44. 远去的人力车
  45. 生命与阳光之重
  46. 一地鸡毛
  47. 登山记
  48. 读山
  49. 诡秘的时间
  50. 爱之路
  51. 笔与山
  52. 岁末年初
  53. 生命受了祝福
  54. 绿的梦幻
  55. 此情可待成追忆
  56. 夏天的忧伤
  57. 落寞槐花
  58. 弯柳
  59. 背影与表情
  60. 沙浒小记
  61. 关于一个村庄
  62. 沧桑的桥
  63. 乡间铁匠
  64. 第四辑 怡园豆棚
  65. 耸立的历史
  66. 踏访燕长城
  67. 雨夜诗情神水馆
  68. 一条大河
  69. 充盈着青铜气息的土地
  70. 一个有厚度的城市
  71. 豆棚居闲话
  72. 怡园豆棚
  73. 怡园昆虫
  74. 鲁迅的书
  75. 读书杂记
  76. 书肆
  77. 淘书纪略
  78. 品味苦难
  79. 逝者的家园
  80. 马背上的高远
  81. 秋天的况味
  82. 止锚湾记
  83. 绥中六记
  84. 后记

FAQ

What is the book's Douban rating?
A search shows that the book's rating on Douban is not widely listed or displayed, which may relate to its relatively niche literary category and quiet publication style. For essay collections focused on inner experience like this, value often depends more on individual reader resonance than on public ratings.
What is the author Di Yuchao's writing background?
Di Yuchao is a member of the China Writers Association and mainly writes prose. His works often appear in major literary journals; his style is known for its calmness, depth, and emphasis on inner exploration, and he has a certain recognition within literary circles. This Moment continues and deepens his personal style.
Is this book suitable as a gift?
It is very suitable as a gift for close friends with similar tastes. It is a thoughtful gift that symbolizes attention to and respect for the recipient's inner world, suitable for birthdays, anniversaries, or any occasion that calls for expressing deep care.

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About the author

邸玉超 Author

Di Yuchao is a Chinese-language author about whom limited public information is available. Two works by this author are confirmed in the library: the essay collection Time in Fragments (a four-volume set) and This Moment. Judging from the common categories of these two works, the writing falls mainly within the essay and miscellaneous prose genre and classic works, with themes centering on everyday life and the experience of time, in a style that tends toward fragmentary, introspective, essay-like expression. Time in Fragments is presented as a four-volume set, with a rather dispersed structure suited to reading in short sittings; This Moment, as the title suggests, attends to immediate experience. Because details such as dates of birth and death, nationality, education, and writing career are not clearly recorded, the author's biography is difficult to sketch, and readers may begin with the works themselves, appreciating their plain, restrained texture and their quiet contemplation of the passage of time.

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