About this item
"Ashs book paints a telling portrait of this most restless generation raised in a system that has provided them with unprecedented personal opportunities while denying them political ones . . . A gifted observer." - Washington Post If China will rule the world one day, who will rule China? There are more than 320 million Chinese between the ages of sixteen and thirty. Children of the one-child policy, born after Mao, with no memory of the Tiananmen Square massacre, they are the first net native generation to come of age in a market-driven, more international China. Their experiences and aspirations were formed in a radically different country from the one that shaped their elders, and their lives will decide the future of their nation and its place in the world.Wish Lanterns offers a deep dive into the life stories of six young Chinese. Dahai is a military child, netizen, and self-styled loser. Xiaoxiao is a hipster from the freezing north. "Fred," born on the tropical southern island of Hainan, is the daughter of a Party official, while Lucifer is a would-be international rock star. Snail is a country boy and Internet gaming addict, and Mia is a fashionista rebel from far west Xinjiang. Following them as they grow up, go to college, find work and love, all the while navigating the pressure of their parents and society, Wish Lanterns paints a vivid portrait of Chinese youth culture and of a millennial generation whose struggles and dreams reflect the larger issues confronting China today.
About the Author
Alec Ash is a writer and editor who lives in China. He is the author of Wish Lanterns (Picador, 2016) , literary nonfiction following the lives of six young Chinese, a BBC Book of the Week. His articles have appeared in The New York Review of Books, The Atlantic, The Spectator and elsewhere. He is China correspondent for the Los Angeles Review of Books and managing editor of its China Channel website. Ash is a contributing author to the book of reportage Chinese Characters (UC Press, 2012) and co-editor of the anthology While We're Here (Earnshaw Books, 2015) . He currently lives in Dali, Yunnan. Twitter: @alecash
