When Wei Hui was a high school student, her teachers said she
was an excellent writer and encouraged her to keep at it. They probably didn't
suspect that she'd become the most notorious young woman in China. Her
short stories were controversial enough, but Shanghai Baby, a semi-
autobiographical novel about the attempts of Coco, a young woman in
Shanghai, to juggle her efforts at writing with a romantic relationship with a
Chinese artist and a sexual fling with a German businessman, were the last
straw for the Chinese government, which officially banned the book. A story
about the ban in the New York Times caught the attention of an editor at
Pocket Books, and an American book deal soon followed. Wei Hui is spending
the fall in the United States as a guest of Columbia's East Asian literature
department, and I met with her at a bakery near her temporary apartment.
RH: Did you first read authors like Allen Ginsberg and Henry
Miller, who Coco loves and who you quote a lot in the book, when
you were in college?
WH: Yes, in translation. It's not easy [to get those books], but I had a
circle of friends who were all interested in Western culture, in the rebellious
culture. music, books, or movies.
RH: What was the reaction like in China to your book?
WH: At first, Shanghai Baby was very popular. For five months,
it was a bestseller, especially among young readers. But then the government
banned it, and I was officially criticized for being decadent. They said my
writing was too sexual, and it focused on the dark side of our beautiful city of
Shanghai. They said it would give a bad influence to the new generation.
People argue about the book on the Internet, and I get very strong attacks
from male readers, who think that it's a simple story of West conquering East,
because of the men in the story. Because Tian Tian is impotent and Mark's very
potent, they think it's critical of Chinese men. Female readers often feel more
sympathetic. They say it's the kind of story they would tell about their lives if
they could tell their story, and they encourage me not to give up. The book did
very well in China before the ban; that proves that it reflected some of the
feelings of the young Chinese generation, especially the women and their
emotions, their confusion and desires.
RH: You've written four books of short stories. Had you wanted
to write a novel for a while now?
WH: It wasn't planned out so consciously. When I write a short story,
it's because I'm interested in something that turns out to be a well small,
delicate story. But when I started writing this book, I think it was the right
time for me to start something longer.
In the bookstore, I always heard people come in and pick up books from the
bookshelf and say, "Oh, still old books about the Cultural Revolution." They
wanted to read something new, something topical by somebody their age.
There were things that happened in my life, and in the lives of my circle of
friends. I thought it could be like a gift to our generation.
RH: Are you finding a lot to write about while you're in
America?
WH: Not yet. The first week I couldn't go anywhere because it was
right after the attacks. I haven't seen New York enough yet. I've heard a lot
about the gay bars, the lesbian bars, in Greenwich Village. I want to go visit
them for my next book. I've been to a lot of countries in the last year, and
every time I arrive in a new city, I try to go to the lesbian bars, because that's
what my next book is about.
RH: Given your reputation in China, I can't imagine the
government would be thrilled to hear you're writing about lesbian
bars.
WH: It's 100% certain I can't publish that book in China right now.
You can't even mention my name in the media. I can't go to public locations. I
have disappeared as a public figure in China for a long time now. But either I
don't write about that kind of topic or... (shrugs) I'll just write whatever
I want, and maybe I'll publish it in the West first. I don't know when they'll
lift the ban. I really try to forget those troubles and think positively.
RH: Have you thought about staying here?
WH: I can't leave China forever. The language, the culture, the
readers...those are the earth where I plant my roots. I can't leave Shanghai. I
love Shanghai food, Shanghai weather. And my friends are all there.
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