Lai Wen

Upea, syvästi koskettava nuoren naisen kasvutarina Taivaallisen rauhan aukion mielenosoitusten pyörteissä.Eletään 1970-luvun Pekingissä, ja Lai asuu vanhempiensa, isoäitinsä ja nuoremman veljensä kanssa työväenluokan alueella. Hänen isoäitinsä on mahtava hahmo, joka nauttii suorapuheisuudestaan ja toisten ihmisten järkyttämisestä. Hänen rakkautensa ja vahvuutensa ovat pienen tytön turva.Sen sijaan Lain kiukkuinen ja turhautunut äiti, ikääntyvä kaunotar, ei voi olla sättimättä murtunutta isää, jolle on tapahtunut Kulttuurivallankumouksessa jotakin, mistä ei koskaan puhuta ja mikä varjostaa perheen elämää.Kasvaessaan Lai oppii näkemään asuinmaansa todellisuuden: yhteenotto poliisin kanssa vainoaa häntä vuosia. Samaan aikaan hän käy läpi kaiken sen, minkä kuka tahansa nuori ihminen kokee – ystävyyssuhteiden ilot ja surut, menestyspakon koulussa sekä rakkauden ensimmäiset kokeilut.Lahjakkaana opiskelijana Lai saa stipendin Pekingin yliopistoon. Siellä hän törmää karismaattiseen kouluajan rakastettuunsa mutta tapaa myös uusia ystäviä ja alkaa osallistua opiskelijoiden mielenosoituksiin.Tiananmenin varjot on romaani nuoren tytön elämästä Kiinassa sekä vuoden 1989 verilöylystä, siitä, miten kovan hinnan nuorten opiskelijoiden sukupolvi maksoi idealismistaan, sankaruudestaan ja rohkeudestaan.”Terävä-älyinen, ajankohtainen ja intiimi” – Bookseller"Tätä kirjaa ei haluaisi lukea ja välillä se tuntuu niin kamalan pahalta, mutta Tiananmenin varjot on pakko kokea. Kuten Lai Wen itse tiivistää: ihmisenä oleminen merkitsee muistamista." – Savon Sanomat PremiumLai Wen lähti Kiinasta Taivaallisen rauhan aukion mielenosoitusten jälkeen vuonna 1989 ja asuu nykyään Kanadassa miehensä ja kahden tyttärensä kanssa. Lai Wen varttui työväenluokan Pekingissä 1970- ja 1980-luvuilla, sai sitten stipendin Pekingin yliopistoon ja päätyi osallistumaan Taivaallisen rauhan aukion mielenosoituksiin, joissa kuoli myös hänen ystäviään. Hän halusi kirjoittaa kirjan vuosikymmeniä mutta ymmärsi vasta Elena Ferranten Napoli-sarjan luettuaan, miten tekisi sen. Lai Wen on pseudonyymi.

- Автобиографический трогательный роман о взрослении в Пекине в 1970-80-е годы и участии в протестах на площади Тяньаньмэнь - История о надеждах и идеалах поколения молодых студентов, об их героизме и мужестве, а также о цене, которую заплатили некоторые из них - Выдающийся автобиографический роман, одновременно интимный и эпичный. Важное свидетельство исторической трагедии, воплощенное в тонком художественном произведении О чем Лай растет в тени Культурной революции, среди шепота взрослых и гнетущей тишины пекинских улиц. Ее мир - тесная квартира, где властвует суровая бабушка, а родители хранят опасные секреты. Встреча с полицией, книги старого букиниста и горькие уроки отца формируют характер девушки, готовой бросить вызов системе. Поступив в университет, Лай становится участницей студенческих протестов. Дружба, первая любовь и мечты о свободе ведут ее к роковому дню на площади Тяньаньмэнь. Писательница, скрывающаяся под псевдонимом Лай Вен, рисует пронзительный портрет поколения, жаждущего перемен. Об авторе Лай Вэнь - псевдоним. Писательница родилась в Пекине в 1970 году и покинула Китай после протестов на площади Тяньаньмэнь в 1989 году. Сейчас она живет в Великобритании с мужем и двумя дочерьми.

- Автобиографический трогательный роман о взрослении в Пекине в 1970-80-е годы и участии в протестах на площади Тяньаньмэнь - История о надеждах и идеалах поколения молодых студентов, об их героизме и мужестве, а также о цене, которую заплатили некоторые из них - Выдающийся автобиографический роман, одновременно интимный и эпичный. Важное свидетельство исторической трагедии, воплощенное в тонком художественном произведении О чем Лай растет в тени Культурной революции, среди шепота взрослых и гнетущей тишины пекинских улиц. Ее мир - тесная квартира, где властвует суровая бабушка, а родители хранят опасные секреты. Встреча с полицией, книги старого букиниста и горькие уроки отца формируют характер девушки, готовой бросить вызов системе. Поступив в университет, Лай становится участницей студенческих протестов. Дружба, первая любовь и мечты о свободе ведут ее к роковому дню на площади Тяньаньмэнь. Писательница, скрывающаяся под псевдонимом Лай Вен, рисует пронзительный портрет поколения, жаждущего перемен. Об авторе Лай Вэнь - псевдоним. Писательница родилась в Пекине в 1970 году и покинула Китай после протестов на площади Тяньаньмэнь в 1989 году. Сейчас она живет в Великобритании с мужем и двумя дочерьми.

En gripande självbiografisk roman om en ung flicka i 1980-talets Kina.Lai växer upp i ett av Pekings arbetarkvarter, tillsammans med en pappa som kuvats av maoismen, en mamma som vägrar att erkänna kulturrevolutionens brott och en mormor som är på väg in i demensens dimma. Mötet med en gammal bokhandlare förändrar hennes liv. Han lånar henne böcker av Camus, Sartre och Orwell som ger henne nya perspektiv på världen. Hon kan inte längre blunda för att hon lever i en diktatur och när hon senare börjar studera vid Pekings universitet blir hon en del av protesterna som kulminerar i tragedin på Himmelska fridens torg 1989.Lai Wen väcker det förflutna till liv i en tankeväckande berättelse om kärlek, vänskap och kampen för frihet.

Lai vokser op i en lille lejlighed i Beijing i 1970’erne med sine forældre og sin mormor og lillebror i et af byens arbejderkvarterer. Efterhånden som hun bliver ældre, får hun øjnene op for, hvad det er for et land, hun bor i: et land, hvor myndighederne kontrollerer sine borgere med trusler og vold. Mødet med en gammel boghandler får afgørende betydning for Lai. Han introducerer hende nemlig forsigtigt til tanker, idéer og romaner, der giver hende nye perspektiver på verden. Da hun senere begynder at læse på Peking Universitet, bliver hun en del af det studenterpolitiske miljø og ender med at deltage i demonstrationerne for fred og demokrati på Den Himmelske Freds Plads i 1989. DEN HIMMELSKE FREDS PLADS er en bevægende selvbiografisk roman om de historiske begivenheder, der udspillede sig i Kina i 1989, hvor en generation af studerende måtte betale en høj pris i kampen for frihed. En gribende og tankevækkende historie om ungdom og håb og om at blive voksen.

An epic, deeply moving coming-of-age novel about young love and lasting friendships forged in the years leading up to the Tiananmen Square student protests, for readers of The Beekeeper of Aleppo and The Night Tiger.As a child in Beijing in the 1970s, Lai lives with her family in a lively, working-class neighborhood near the heart of the city. Thoughtful yet unassuming, she spends her days with her friends beyond the attention of her parents: Her father is a reclusive figure who lingers in the background, while her mother, an aging beauty and fervent patriot, is quick-tempered and preoccupied with neighborhood gossip. Only Lai's grandmother, a formidable and colorful maverick, seems to really see Lai and believe that she can blossom beyond their circumstances.But Lai is quickly awakened to the harsh realities of the Chinese state. A childish prank results in a terrifying altercation with police that haunts her for years; she also learns that her father, like many others, was broken during the Cultural Revolution. As she enters adolescence, Lai meets a mysterious and wise bookseller who introduces her to great works--Hemingway, Camus, and Orwell, among others--that open her heart to the emotional power of literature and her mind to thrillingly different perspectives. Along the way, she experiences the ebbs and flows of friendship, the agony of grief, and the first steps and missteps in love.A gifted student, Lai wins a scholarship to study at the prestigious Peking University where she soon falls in with a theatrical band of individualists and misfits dedicated to becoming their authentic selves, despite the Communist Party's insistence on conformity--and a new world opens before her. When student resistance hardens under the increasingly restrictive policies of the state, the group gets swept up in the fervor, determined to be heard, joining the masses of demonstrators and dreamers who display remarkable courage and loyalty in the face of danger. As 1989 unfolds, the spirit of change is in the air...Drawn from her own life, Lai Wen's novel is mesmerizing and haunting--a universal yet intimate story of youth and self-discovery that plays out against the backdrop of a watershed historic event. Tiananmen Square captures the hope and idealism of a new generation and the lasting price they were willing to pay in the name of freedom.

'An extraordinary book. Truly important' William Boyd 'Outstanding ... Intimate as well as epic' Sunday Times 'Poignant and powerful' Daily Mail 'Utterly gripping' The Spectator 'Beautiful and devastating' Irish News Sunday Times Best Summer Reads 2024 Longlisted for the Authors’ Club Best First Novel Award 2025 Shortlisted in the British Book Awards 2025 A STORY OF UNBREAKABLE FRIENDSHIP AND THE PRICE OF FREEDOM Beijing in the 1970s. Lai lives with her parents, grandmother and youngerbrother in a small flat in a working-class area. Her grandmother is a formidable figure, while her ageing beauty of a mother snipes at her father, a sunken figure haunted by the Cultural Revolution. As she grows up, Lai comes to discern the realities of the country she lives in. But she also goes through the ebbs and flows of friendships; troubles and rewards at home and at school; and the first steps and missteps in love. A gifted student, she attends the prestigious Peking University; while there she becomes involved in the student protests that have been gathering speed. It is the late 1980s, and change is in the air . . . 5 STAR READER REVIEWS ‘Captivating, intimate and so moving, I finished it in tears’‘Wow! This was a stunning novel’‘Probably one of the most memorable, poignant, emotional books I've ever read … This will crawl for a while under my skin. Can I give a 6th star?’‘A brilliant and important read’‘Beautifully written. I read it slowly as I wanted to savour every word’‘There is something so deeply touching, tender yet powerful in the writing … This coming-of-age story is compelling, haunting, emotive and written beautifully. By the end, it left me in tears. It is a book I will long remember’

It is Beijing in the 1970s, and Lai lives with her parents, grandmother and younger brother in a small flat in a working-class area. Her grandmother is a formidable figure - no-nonsense and uncompromising, but loving towards her granddaughter - while her ageing beauty of a mother snipes at her father, a sunken figure who has taken refuge in his work.As she grows up, Lai comes to discern the realities of the country she lives is: an early encounter with the police haunts her for years; her father makes her see that his quietness is a reaction to experiences he has lived through; and an old bookseller subtly introduces her to ideas and novels that open her mind to different perspectives. But she also goes through what anyone goes through when young - the ebbs and flows of friendships; troubles and rewards at home and at school; and the first steps and missteps in love.A gifted student, she is eventually given a scholarship to study at the prestigious Peking University; while there she meets new friends, and starts to get involved in the student protests that have been gathering speed. It is the late 1980s, and change is in the air...A truly remarkable novel about coming to see the world as it is, Tiananmen Square is the story of one girl's life growing up in the China of the 1970s and 80s, as well as the story of the events in 1989 that give the novel its name: the hope and idealism of a generation of young students, their heroism and courage, and the price that some of them paid.