A book exhibition hosted and organized by Taiwan Academy in Los Angeles, “Reading Taiwan: Modern Taiwanese Literary Classics” is a two-month celebration of Taiwanese literature opening on February 8th, and will be on display till April 8th.
Designed to be an engaging, multi-dimensional literary event, Reading Taiwan not only includes a mini book fair, weekly screenings of writers’ documentaries as well as short films and feature films adapted from literary works, but also several literary talks featuring renowned scholars of Taiwanese literature from the west coast as speakers.
The books featured in the exhibition are predominantly English translation copies, from early novels such as From the Old Country by Zhong Tie-jun and Orphan of Asia by Zhuo-liu Wu, to modern classics such as Taipei People by Bai Xing-Yong and Family Catastrophe by Wang Wen-xing, the book fair boasts a comprehensive but thoughtfully curated collection that represents the core history and development of Taiwanese literature.
The book fair shines a spotlight on modern Taiwanese literary classics with a complete presentation of literary works published by Columbia University Press, well-known for their masterful translations provided by well-respected scholars in the field.
Along with the Columbia University series is a vast selection of quarterly journals by The Taipei Chinese Pen, containing poems, short stories and more which captures the heart of contemporary literature from Taiwan. Aside from the collections mentioned above, the award-winning publications from the Taipei International Book Exhibition is also available on site.
According to Taiwan Academy, the collection on display at Reading Taiwan is of an unprecedented scale, providing comprehensive access to nearly every available English-translated Taiwanese literary publications to date in one place.
The Reading Taiwan book exhibition differs from the traditional book fair format in that visitors will not be able to purchase the books on site, though information on how and where to purchase the books is readily available from the staff. The focus of the book fair instead is the literary experience; a cozy reading corner welcomes all visitors to read any of the books available at the fair, with no admission fees.
Aside from the reading corner, Reading Taiwan also screens litearry films weekly. Writer’s documentaries and adapted short films will be available for viewing throughout the day every Tuesday and Thursday. Feature films adapted from literary works will be available every Saturday afternoon at 1 pm. All screenings are free and open to the public.
In order to provide deeper understanding and create opportunities for the public to engage in Taiwanese literature, Taiwan Academy will be hosting three Reading Taiwan literary talks featuring renowned scholars passionate and dedicated to Taiwanese literature, notably Dominic C.N. Cheung, Ping-hui Liao, Michael Berry, Shih Shu-mei and Robert Chi.
This program is hosted and organized by Taiwan Academy in Los Angeles, with generous support from the National Museum of Taiwan Literature. The exhibition echoes that of the Taipei International Book Exhibition, featuring the award-winning literary works simultaneously overseas to serve as satellite location for the public to catch a glimpse of the major event that is TiBE. Taipei International Book Exhibition is the largest book exhibition in Asia, as well as one of the top four major book exhibitions in the world. Participated by fifty-nine countries this year, TiBE is expected to attract nearly six-hundred thousand visitors total, thus widely regarded as one of the most important cultural event for Taiwanese literature internationally.
For more information, visit Taiwan Academy’s facebook at www.facebook.com/taiwanacademyla