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by Li Qingzhao (Author), Wendy Chen (Translator)
A luminous new translation of the greatest woman poet in Chinese history, highlighting Li Qingzhao's iconoclastic verse and showcasing her visionary portrait of the inner workings of the artist's mind.
The Magpie at Night is a lyrical and searching portrait of the inner life of Li Qingzhao, one of the greatest poets in Chinese literary history. These spare and arresting poems evoke with rare immediacy the quiet and haunting beauty of country life during the Song dynasty; the unseen, restive labor of the poet; and Li Qingzhao's bracing and complex take on what it means to create art as a woman in the shadow of exile, war, imprisonment, and an unwelcoming literary establishment. In Wendy Chen's splendid new translation, each of Li Qingzhao's ci--lyrics that were originally set to music--is as sharp and fresh as the edge of a new spring leaf. These richly textured bolts of melody tell a story that will resonate with scholars eager to restore this iconic figure to the canon of classical Chinese poetry, as well as with contemporary readers who will relate to the strikingly modern mode in which she delivers her wry, unsentimental, and bracing thoughts on art and posterity.Author Biography
Li Qingzhao (1084-1151), also known as Yi'an Jushi, is considered the greatest woman poet in Chinese history, though only two English translations of her works remain in print today. During her lifetime, she defied cultural expectations for women by writing and persevering through war, exile, imprisonment, and the loss of her fortune.
Wendy Chen is the author of the novel Their Divine Fires and the poetry collection Unearthings. She is the recipient of prizes and fellowships from the Academy of American Poets, MacDowell, and elsewhere. Her work has been translated into multiple languages, and she has taught and spoken at the Academy of American Poets, Poets and Writers, Poetry Foundation, and Yale University. She is an assistant professor of creative writing at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and is the editor of Figure 1.
Number of Pages: 144
Dimensions: 0.41 x 8.2 x 5.44 IN
Publication Date: February 25, 2025
