Three Records of a Floating Life

Name: Three Records of a Floating Life
ISBN: 9787108018540

Shen JunshanSDX Joint Publishing Company2003

4.0

Chapters: 20
ISBN: 9787108018540

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Summary

Shen Chun-shan was a physicist and former president of National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan; he won the Honinbo title three times as a U.S. Go champion and twice placed second in world bridge competitions. He could discuss astrophysics with Wu Ta-you and Go with Nie Weiping and Wu Ching-yuan, and he socialized with the likes of Jin Yong and Lin Qingxia, earning him a place among Taiwan's "Four Young Gentlemen." What makes essays by such a figure so appealing is their lack of boundaries: he explains Einstein's relativity clearly through metaphor and story; his accounts of childhood mischief and the Hualien lighthouse carry the warmth of a bygone era; and "Remembering Chien-mei," a restrained portrait of decades of mutual affection, is regarded by many readers as the book's most moving piece. The SDX Joint Publishing edition is the one mainland readers know best, with a complete table of contents, a preface for the mainland edition, and reviews from across the Taiwan Strait and Hong Kong—revealing both erudition and temperament. If you enjoy the "wide-ranging and curious" style of old-school scholars like Wang Shixiang and Wang Zengqi, this book deserves a place on your desk.

Editor's review

沈君山是物理学家，也曾任台湾清华大学校长；他三次获得美国围棋冠军“本因坊”头衔，并且两度夺得世界桥牌赛亚军。他既能与吴大猷论天文物理，也能与聂卫平、吴清源谈棋，与金庸、林青霞等人往来唱和，被称作台湾“四大公子”之一。这样一位人物写下的散文，最有意思的地方在于不设边界：他讲爱因斯坦的相对论，能用比喻和故事讲得明白晓畅；他写儿时打菩萨、花莲灯塔，又满是旧时代的温度；而《怀念见美》一篇写几十年相知相惜的克制情谊，被不少读者视为全书的动人之笔。三联版为大陆读者最熟悉的版本，篇目齐整，附有大陆版自序与两岸三地的书评，读来既见学识，也见性情。如果你喜欢王世襄、汪曾祺那一路“杂学而有趣”的旧派文人笔调，这本书值得放在案头。

Who it's for

A good fit for

喜爱学者型散文、旧派文人笔调的读者
对围棋史、桥牌文化与围棋名家掌故有兴趣的人
想了解二十世纪台湾知识界人物交游与两岸经历的读者
理工背景但对文史有兴趣、想看看“文理兼通”如何写作的人

Not a good fit for

期待完整自传或系统回忆录、要求叙事连贯的读者
只想读轻松故事、对围棋、桥牌与物理话题完全没有兴趣的人
偏好强情节小说或当代快节奏随笔的读者

Reading tips

可先读《怀念见美》《花莲的白灯塔》等篇，感受文字温度，再进入科学与棋桥部分。
读科学一辑时不必逐句啃物理，把它当作一位科学家的“科普随笔”来读会更顺畅。
配合作者的“浮生”系列其他作品（如《浮生再记》《浮生后记》）对读，能补全他未写完的“六记”。
遇到不熟悉的人物（吴大猷、魏重庆、吴清源）可随手查一查背景，阅读的兴味会成倍增加。

About the publisher

SDX Joint Publishing Company China · Founded in 1932

SDX Joint Publishing Company is a publisher known for its humanities and social science titles, covering classics, culture, history, social fiction and politics. Its catalogue of 826 books includes Chinese and foreign literary classics such as The Scholars, Camel Xiangzi and Selected Short Stories of Chekhov, scholarly works such as Studies of Chinese Cave Temples, A Study of the Tuoba History (Revised Edition) and The Nine-Rank System: A Prehistory of the Imperial Examination, and translations such as Red Star Over China and Notes from the House of the Dead. Its authors include renowned Chinese and foreign writers such as Wu Jingzi, Lao She, Su Bai and Chekhov, as well as scholars and translators such as Chen Xiaoming, Wang Benhua, Guo Changbao and Zhu Xiansheng. Its publishing character lies in balancing the popularisation of classics with academic depth, with attention to textual quality and the transmission of knowledge.

Preface to the Mainland Chinese Edition
Preface to the Taiwan Edition—Written Before Floating Life: Three Records
Still Thinking of Guarding the Frontier for the Nation (Zhang Zuojin)
Humanities: Striking the Bodhisattva—A Childhood Incident
The White Lighthouse of Hualien
Remembering Yanmou
Remembering Jianmei
The April Day of All Time—The Love and Marriages of Hu Shi, Xu Zhimo, Lin Huiyin, and Jin Yuelin
Science: The Breakthrough of Knowledge—The Story of Einstein
In Search of a Stationary Standard
The Philosopher Has Withered—Mourning Mr. Wu Dayou
Post-Technological Civilization and China
Go and Bridge: One Move as the Law for All Under Heaven—Congratulating Mr. Wu Qingyuan on Receiving an Honorary Doctorate from the Chinese University of Hong Kong
Do Not Let Floating Clouds Obscure the Gaze—Two Letters to My Apprentice Shi Yichen
Wei Ping and I—Preface to Nie Weiping's A Life in Go
Remembering Wei Chongqing
Bridge Travel Miscellany
Postscript on Old Age and Illness: "Do What I Can, Love What I Do"—A Conversation with Mr. Xu Zhuoyun After His Stroke
Old Age, Illness, and Life and Death
Biographical Sketch

FAQ

这本书和沈复的《浮生六记》有什么关系？

只是取意上的致敬。沈君山原计划仿《浮生六记》写“六记”，分别记人文、科学、棋桥、两岸、爱情与老病，最终完成并结集的是“三记”，即本书。内容与沈复原著并无直接关联。

大陆版有哪几个主要版本？

常见的有2003年生活·读书·新知三联书店版（ISBN 9787108018540）、2014年上海文艺出版社版，以及2020年民主与建设出版社增订再版；台湾则有九歌出版社版本，篇目略有出入。

没有围棋和物理基础能读吗？

可以。人文与追忆部分完全无门槛，科学与棋桥部分作者写得深入浅出，当作人物故事与科学趣谈来读即可，不必看懂每个术语。

书中的“小传”是什么内容？

是沈君山自述生平的较长文字，从家世、求学写到返台任教，是全书中了解作者来历最直接的一篇，许多读者建议放在开卷先读。

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