Chinese Fiction of the Cultural Revolution

Appendix 2: Annotated Bibliography of Novels of the Cultural Revolution

Appendix 2: Annotated Bibliography of Novels of the Cultural Revolution This bibliography includes all CR novels with a length of over 200 pages except for a few for which we lack certain information regarding authorship, publisher, page number or content. Bai, Wei (1976). Shaonian hong hua bing [Youthful Red Painters]. Taiyuan: Shanxi Renmin Chubanshe. 235 pp. - This novel is set during the Cultural Revolution. A group of children headed by a juvenile heroine make propaganda in a village through painting. Seeing that some people attempt to spread anti,revolutionary cultural elements in the village, the children unite to carry out class struggle with their paintings. They finally expose a hidden class enemy and educate the backward villagers. Beijing Shi Tong Xian San,jiehe Chuangzuo Zu [The 'Three,in,one' Writing Group of Tong County, Beijing City] (1976). Chenguang qu [A Song of Dawn]. Beijing: Renmin Wenxue Chubanshe. 590 pp. - This novel describes a group of school,leavers who go to live and work in the countryside. They strive to turn wasteland to farmland by moving sand. They also oppose the spontaneous capitalist forces both in cities and in the countryside. Bi, Fang and Zhong, Tao (1974). Qian chong lang [Billows and Waves]. Beijing: Renmin Wenxue Chubanshe. 684 pp. - Set in a village in north,east China between 1965 and 1966, this novel describes the development of agricultural mechanization in the village. 294 • Appendix 2 The Party secretary of the village leads a group of people in assembling parts of used machines into a tractor. The theme of the story is promotion of self, reliance in agricultural mechanization in the countryside. Bian, Zizheng (1976). Zaolin Cun [Zaolin Village]. Hefei: Anhui Renmin Chubanshe. 273 pp. - This novel describes a group of juveniles participating in class struggle and collective labour in the village. The novel indicates that the promoted 'three revolutionary movements' (of class struggle, the struggle for production and scientific experiment) are a great school for children's education and growth. Cai, Weicai (1975). Jifeng [The Gale]. Wuhan: Hubei Renmin Chubanshe. 234 pp. - Set in the south of Hebei Plain in the late stages of the Sino,Japanese War, this novel describes a unit of the district army guided by the Party. The unit plays a major role in fighting against a plan of the Japanese army and its puppet government, according to which a large number of labourers are forced to work for them. Cai, Zhenxing (1976). Ji zhan changkong [The Great Battle of the Skies]. Shanghai: Shanghai Renmin Chubanshe. 238 pp. - A novel for children. In summer of 1962 a national defence project is under construction. A unit of the Kuomintang airforce attempts to bomb the construction site. An air unit of the PLA meets the enemy in the sky. A fiery battle is presented in the novel. The enemy is finally routed and the defence project is safe. Chang, Zheng (1974). Zhongliu dizhu [The Mainstay]. Shijiazhuang: Hebei Renmin Chubanshe. 434 pp. - Mao issued a directive in 1963: 'We must re,harness the Hai River'. The construction of the whole project lasted several years. This novel describes the people of a county in the Hai River valley, who work hard to contribute to the project. The coordination between different fronts in the construction is emphasized. Chen, Dabin (1975). Benteng de Dongliuhe [The Surging Dongliu River]. Tianjin: Tianjin Renmin Chubanshe. 363 pp. - This novel is set in a village to the north of the Huai River in 1953. The villagers firmly carry out collectivization and fight capitalist ideology, class enemies, and natural disasters. Chen (Shen), Rong (1975). Wan nian qing [Evergreen]. Beijing: Renmin Wenxue Chubanshe. 565 pp. - This novel is set in a village in north China in the early 1960s. A county official comes down to the village to carry out a policy of fixing household output quotas. His ideas and actions are opposed by the Party secretary of the village and his followers, who firmly uphold the previous system of collective production. Finally an official instruction from the Appendix 2 • 295 supreme level proves that the county official is wrong. Cheng, Jian (1975). San tan Hongyudong [Exploring Thrice the Hongyu Cave]. 2 vols. Shanghai: Shanghai Renmin Chubanshe. 934 pp. - A novel for children. It describes a geological prospecting team looking for a water source for a big project for war,readiness in a mountain area. The project cannot be carried out until the problem of shortage of...