Tham Yew Chin (Chinese: 谭幼今; born 1950), known by her pseudonym You Jin (尤今), is a Singaporean writer. She received the Cultural Medallion Award in 2009 for her contributions to Singapore's literary arts scene.
You Jin | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native name | 尤今 | ||||||||
| Born | Tham Yew Chin 1950 (age 73–74) Ipoh, British Malaya | ||||||||
| Occupation | Writer | ||||||||
| Language | Chinese, English | ||||||||
| Alma mater | Nanyang University | ||||||||
| Period | 1970-present | ||||||||
| Genre | Novel | ||||||||
| Notable works | Jinse Daishu Release Your Happiness Even The Heart Soars | ||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||
| Chinese | 尤今 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Alternative Chinese name | |||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 譚幼今 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 谭幼今 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Early life and family
editTham was born 1950 in Ipoh, British Malaya. Her family relocated to Singapore when she was eight years old. Moving to Singapore, she suffered from a language barrier as she only spoke Cantonese. Her father was a construction worker, and her paternal grandfather was an immigrant from then-poverty-torn China.[1]
Career
editTham has published close to 160 literary works under the pseudonym of You Jin.[2] In 2009, she received the Cultural Medallion in literary arts for the first time.[3] Tham contributed an essay titled A Fish in Water for former Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew's 2012 book, My Lifelong Challenge: Singapore's Bilingual Journey.[1]
In 2012, Tham's writing was translated into English for the first time. Her 2004 collection of short stories, 听, 青春在哭泣 : 短篇小说, was translated by Sylvia Li-chun Lin and published by Epigram Books as Teaching Cats to Jump Hoops as part of its Cultural Medallion series.[4] Her 2005 autobiography, A Life in Words (文字就是生命} was then translated by Shelly Bryant and published in 2016 by the same company, marking the fourth time she would win the award.[5]
In 2014, three of Tham's books, Jinse Daishu (金色袋鼠), Release Your Happiness (释放快乐) and Even The Heart Soars (心也飞翔), entered the Singapore Literature Prize shortlist for Chinese fiction and non-fiction.[6] Eventually, Even The Heart Soars (心也飞翔) won a merit award for Chinese non-fiction.[7]
Awards
edit- 1982: National Book Development Council of Singapore Book Award
- 1991: National Book Development Council of Singapore Book Award
- 1991: Singapore Chinese Literary Award (from the Singapore Literature Society)
- 1996: Montblanc-NUS Centre for the Arts Literary Award
- 2009: Cultural Medallion for Literature
Selected works
edit- 词选赏析 (1973, 华文中学教师会)
- 电神和雷魔 : 泰国民间故事 / The Tale of Lightning and Thunder (1980, 彩艺出版公司)
- 大胡子的春与冬 (1989, 新亚出版社) ISBN 9971803984
- 风筝在云里笑 (1989, 东升出版社, 热带出版社) ISBN 7536013183
- 尘世浮雕 (1990, 成功出版社) ISBN 9813088192
- 含笑的蜻蜓 (1991, 教育出版公司) ISBN 9971002469
- 方格子里的世界 : 尤今的足迹 (1992, 四川文艺出版社) ISBN 7541109312
- 灯影內的人生 : 尤今散文选粹 (1992, 四川文艺出版社) ISBN 9787541109164
- 百年苦乐 (1993, 新亚出版社) ISBN 997180767X
- 家在新加坡 : 尤今散文新作 (1993, 四川文艺出版社) ISBN 7541110620
- 结局 (1993, 吉林人民出版社) ISBN 978-7-206-01902-9
- 活在羊群里的人 (1994, 新亚出版社) ISBN 9971807904
- 长屋生涯原是梦 (1995, 浙江文艺出版社) ISBN 7533908155
- 瑰丽的旋涡 (1995, 教育出版公司) ISBN 9971005514
- 回首叫云飞风起 (1995, 浙江文艺出版社) ISBN 7533908384
- 跌碎的彩虹 (1996, 教育出版公司) ISBN 9971007460
- 华义文圃. 第十期, 学海无涯 (1997, 华义中学中文学会) OCLC 426281524 ISSN 0129-0983
- 荒谷 (1997, 新亚出版社) ISBN 9812252533
- 大地的珠宝 (1998, 新亚出版社) ISBN 978-981-225-346-0
- 黑色的稻米 (1999, 2000, SNP Editions) ISBN 9971010364
- 吹笛子的人 (2001, 重庆出版社) ISBN 753665233X
- 豆花不撒谎 (2005, 玲子传媒) ISBN 9814157562
- 大地的耳朵 (2007, 玲子传媒) ISBN 9789814200585
- 缤纷城事 (2008, 四川人民出版社) ISBN 9787220074981
- 缤纷城事 : 随尤今的足迹, 听都市的声音 (2008, 玲子传媒) ISBN 9789814243063
- 爱恨交缠的瘀痕 (2010, Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd) ISBN 9789810626525
- 爱是一朵花 (2010, 江苏文艺出版社) ISBN 9787539936345
- 寸寸土地皆故事 (2010, 新加坡青年书局) ISBN 9789810864132
- 等待国旗的人 (2010, 新加坡青年书局) ISBN 9789810864125
References
edit- ^ a b Lee, Kuan Yew (2012). My Lifelong Challenge: Singapore's Bilingual Journey. Straits Times Press. pp. 349–352. ISBN 9789814342032.
- ^ "Teaching Cats to Jump Hoops". Epigram Books. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
- ^ Editions Didier Millet (2011). Singapore at Random. Editions Didier Millet. pp. 141–. ISBN 978-981-4260-37-4.
- ^ "Teaching Cats to Jump Hoops". Epigram Books. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
- ^ Jin, You (2016). A Life in Words. Epigram Books. ISBN 978-981-4615-44-0.
- ^ "Singapore Literature Prize 2014 Shortlist". The Book Council. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
- ^ Martin, Mayo (4 November 2014). "S'pore Literature Prize 2014 winners announced". MediaCorp. TODAY. Retrieved 29 January 2015.