ByLiKunwuandPhilippe脭ti茅r(France),SDXJointPublishingCompany,April2016
AuthorLiKunwurecountslifeasanordinaryChinesebabyboomerinanordinarytown,withover3,000framesofcomicsandcomicstripsspanninghalfacenturymarkedbymeteoricsocialprogressinChina.
Hecreatedmorethan100charactersbasedonhisfamilymembers,classmates,friends,coworkers,neighbors,andsoldiers,drawingrealdetailsofordinarypeopleandtheirfeelings.
Thegraphicworkconsistsofthreevolumes,respectivelytitledHardships,TurningPoints,andProsperity,usingordinarypeople鈥檚livestotracethesocialprogressinmodernChina.Thefirstvolumerecountsthefrustrationoftheauthor鈥檚familyinthe1950s.Thesecondfocusesonhisarmyservicethatbeganin1972.ThethirdshowsthenewchoicesLiandeveryonearoundhimmadeduringtheeconomictideafterthecountrylaunchedreformandopening-upin1978.
Dargaud,aprestigiousFrenchpublisher,releasedthecompletegraphicnovelin2009.ItwontwoprizesattheSaint-Malobookfairin2010andwasselectedfortheAngoul锚meInternationalComicsFestival,oftenlikenedto鈥淐omicsOscars.鈥漈oday,thebookhasbeentranslatedintoFrench,German,Spanish,andEnglish.Thisnewversionisacollector鈥檚edition,withnewmaterialaddedtotheoriginalthreevolumes.
鈥淎uniqueepicdepictingordinarypeople鈥檚toilsoverhalfacentury,itdocumentstheirdailylifethroughhistoricalchanges,authentic,sincere,andtouching,鈥漜ommentedjournalistCaoJingxing.
AsareviewinTheGuardianputsit,thestoriessupporttheleadroleoffate,reflectinghowindividualsweremoldedbymodernChinaaswellasthechoicesandstrugglesmadebypeoplearoundLi.Withhisambitiousgraphicnovel,theauthorshortenedthedistancebetweenhisreadersandChina,andshowcasedthelossesandgainsofthecountryaswellasitsgreatnessandvariousheadlocksduringitsdevelopment.
LiKunwufromChinaandPhilippe脭ti茅rfromFranceworkedtogetherforfiveyearstoco-authorthebook.Duringcompilation,accordingto脭ti茅r,theyalwaystriedtofindbalancebetween鈥渟elvesintheeyesoftheChinese鈥漚nd鈥淐hinaintheeyesofforeigners.鈥漈heyeventuallyreachedconsensustopresenttheoriginallookofstoriesthroughtheeyesofordinarypeopleandleavethespaceforreaderstofeelandjudge.
LiKunwu,anativeofKunming,YunnanProvince,wasborninJune1955.Hejoinedthearmyin1972andfoughtintheSino-VietnameseWarof1979.From1980to2010,heworkedatYunnanDaily.LiservesasmemberofthecouncilofYunnanArtistsAssociationandexecutivememberofthecouncilofChinaNewscartoonSociety.Overthelastfewyears,hehasshowcasedKunmingwithhiscomics,publishingmorethan30comicbooks,themostnoticeableofwhichisEighteenWeirdsinYunnan,aclassicdepictingcivilcultureinthecityofKunming.
Philippe脭ti茅rwasborninP茅rigueux,France,in1964.Hehasbeenaplaywrightfor10yearsandacomicsfanforlonger.Duringtheearly1990s,heworkedasadiplomatforFrance鈥檚MinistryofFinance,andfor15yearsthatfollowedheworkedandlivedinChinaandEastAsia.Today,heresidesinWuhan,theprovincialseatofHubei.