Once Upon a Time in the East (book)
Once Upon a Time in the East is a memoir by Chinese-born British Xiaolu Guo. The book is titled Nine Continents: A Memoir In and Out of China in the United States.
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| Author | Xiaolu Guo |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Media type | Print (hardcover, paperback) |
| ISBN | 9781473524309 |
Summary edit
Guo's memoir begins with her as a newborn, when she was given to another couple by her parents. The couple raised Guo in a mountain village, where she remained until she was two years old, when the couple sent Guo back to her grandparents. Guo lived with her grandparents in the fishing village Shitang until she was seven. As a child, Guo was in constant hunger. She later met her birth parents and lived at a communist compound. The memoir documents her time in Beijing, and in London after moving there in 2002.[1]
Background edit
Guo decided to write the book because her friends said that her previously published writings about her childhood "were amazing". Her novel Village of Stone was partially based on her life. Guo thought that it would be hard to write the book, but she said that "it was the quickest book" that she has written. It was most difficult for Guo to write about her early life.[2]
The book is titled Nine Continents: A Memoir In and Out of China in the United States.[3]
Reception edit
A review in The Scotsman compared this book with Dear Friend, From My Life I Write To You In Your Life by Yiyun Li, stating, "But the differences are more deep-structured than superficial, in that Guo and Li represent two sides of an almost perpetual literary dichotomy; the Romantic and the Classical. Although Li writes movingly and affectingly about her own circumstances – the essays were born out of two spells in hospital for depression and speak openly about suicide – she writes towards a kind of selflessness".[4]
Kirkus Reviews praised the book: 'A rich and insightful coming-of-age story of not only a woman, but an artist and the country in which she was born.'[3]
| Year | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Costa Book Award for Biography | Shortlist | [5] |
| 2017 | National Book Critics Circle Award for Autobiography | Winner | [6][7][8] |
| 2018 | Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize | Shortlist | [9] |
| 2018 | Rathbones Folio Prize | Shortlist | [10] |
References edit
- ^ O'Keeffe, Alice (January 15, 2017). "Xiaolu Guo: 'Rage and bitterness sent me into the world of literature'". The Guardian. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
- ^ Roxburgh, Helen (July 6, 2017). "Xiaolu Guo on her new book Once Upon a Time in the East". Time Out Shanghai. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
- ^ a b "Review: Nine Continents: A Memoir In and Out of China". Kirkus Reviews. August 7, 2017.
- ^ "Book reviews: Once Upon A Time In The East, by Xiaolu Guo and Dear Friend, From My Life I Write To You In Your Life, by Yiyun Li". The Scotsman. January 25, 2017. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
- ^ Flood, Alison (2017-11-21). "Helen Dunmore's final poems lead shortlists for 2017 Costa prizes". The Guardian. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
- ^ "2017". National Book Critics Circle. Retrieved 2022-01-25.
- ^ "2017 National Book Critics Circle Award Winners". The Millions. 2018-03-15. Retrieved 2022-01-25.
- ^ Colyard, K. W. (2018-03-16). "The National Book Critics Circle Award Winners For 2017 Are All Women & You'll Want To Read All Their Books". Bustle. Retrieved 2022-01-25.
- ^ Flood, Alison (2018-05-14). "Ondaatje prize goes to 'mythic' poems about a mother's mental illness". The Guardian. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
- ^ "Announcing: the Rathbones Folio Prize 2018 Shortlist | The Rathbones Folio Prize". Retrieved 2022-12-06.