The Forum for the Academy and the Public: Using Fiction to Shed Light on the PRC


 Humanities Center     Dec 2 2021 | 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM Zoom and HG1030



Join the Forum for the Academy and the Public for the final Book Slam event of the fall quarter on December 2nd at 2:00 p.m. Unlike previous events, which have focused largely on non-fiction journalism and scholarship of China, this event will highlight how fiction can illuminate China’s past and present. Though the stories and characters in these works are invented, the themes they elucidate are still profoundly relevant to understanding the modern PRC.

The event will feature two new novels set in China, My Old Home: A Novel of Exile by Orville Schell and Shanghai Redemption, an Inspector Chen novel by Qiu Xiaolong. The event will also feature commentary from three esteemed guests who have all written both fiction and non-fiction works on China, Lijia Zhang, a writer, journalist and public speaker, Sigrid Schmalzer, professor of history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Adam Brookes, journalist and author.

The format for this event will mimic previous events, beginning with short introductions on each novel followed by discussion between the authors and commentators. This discussion will be followed by a Q&A session with Jeff Wasserstrom, Chancellor’s Professor of History at UC Irvine, moderating.

This event will be hybrid, held live at UCI and streamed online via Zoom. All are welcome to attend.

This event is sponsored by the UCI Forum for the Academy and the Public and the Long U.S.-China Institute.

RSVP HERE