Sinophagia, edited by Xueting C. Ni
23 Sept 2024The Book
Synopsis:
An anthology of chilling tales from contemporary China, translated into English for the very first time.
A sister to Ni’s British Fantasy Award-nominated anthology, A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction, Sinophagia collects 14 dazzling tales of contemporary Chinese horror that have been translated into English for the very first time.This collection has been carefully curated, to go beyond people’s expectations, of hopping vampires and hanging ghosts. It provides a fascinating insight into the psyche of modern China - and is absolutely spine chilling.
It includes a wide range of voices, from China’s most well-known creepy story tellers to bold upcoming writers with a sense of urban horror - a truly ground-breaking collection.
My Review
Sinophagia: A Celebration of Chinese Horror is a well-rounded horror anthology compiled and translated by Xueting C. Ni, published by Solaris Books. A book that feels as a labour of love, introduced by the own editor, which helps us to understand better why horror in Chinese is neglected many times, and that also throws some light on the cultural context. It is worth to notice (a practice that I certainly appreciate) that each story comes with a list of content warnings.
This anthology features a wide range of voices and themes, some drawing from folklore and legends, while others are clearly inspired by nowadays worries (we could talk about the fear for the past against the fear for the modern). It is difficult that all the stories end affecting you at the same level, but I found that Ni's notes after each one helped me to get some of the nuances that I might have missed, especially regarding concrete terms.
There's also something shared across all the stories, and it's the shivers/uncanniness transmitted through words; despite I cannot point to a concrete detail, that pleased me greatly. In particular, Forbidden Rooms ended becoming one of my favourites from the anthology, a really smart story rooted in the fear of society's indifference towards other people's suffering; and The Girl with the Umbrella twisted a classic trope in a really memorable way.
If you are a horror reader, this anthology is a must read; Xueting C. Ni has done a marvelous work not only to translate these stories, but to also share the nuances we might reader because of our different background. An excellent collection that brings light over many authors that might be unknown to the West, but that have an incredible amount of talent.
The Author/s
Xueting Christine Ni
Xueting C. Ni was born in Guangzhou, during China’s “re-opening to the West”. Having lived in cities across China, she emigrated with her family to Britain at the age of 11, where she continued to be immersed in Chinese culture, alongside her British education, realising ultimately that this gave her a unique a cultural perspective, bridging her Eastern and Western experiences. After graduating in English Literature from the University of London, she began a career in the publishing industry, whilst also translating original works of Chinese fiction. She returned to China in 2008 to continue her research at Central University of Nationalities, Beijing. Since 2010, Xueting has written extensively on Chinese culture and China’s place in Western pop media, working with companies, theatres, institutions and festivals, to help improve understanding of China’s heritage, culture and innovation, and introduce its wonders to new audiences. Xueting has contributed to the BBC, Tordotcom Publishing, and the Guangdong Art Academy. Her first book, From Kuan Yin to Chairman Mao, is published by Weiser Books. Her new anthology Sinopticon: A Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction came out in November 2021. Xueting currently lives just outside London with her partner and their cats, all of whom are learning Chinese.