Description
Description
'A long-time confidante of the rain and snow, I am ninety years old. The rain and snow have weathered me, and I too have weathered them'. At the end of the twentieth-century an old woman sits among the birch trees and thinks back over her life, her loves, and the joys and tragedies that have befallen her family and her people. She is a member of the Evenki tribe who wander the remote forests of north-eastern China with their herds of reindeer, living in close sympathy with nature at its most beautiful and cruel. An idyllic childhood playing by the river ends with her father's death and the growing realisation that her mother's and uncle's relationship is not as simple as she thought. Then, in the 1930s, the intimate, secluded world of the tribe is shattered when the Japanese army invades China. The Evenki cannot avoid being pulled into the brutal conflict which marks the first step towards the end of their isolation... In The Last Quarter of the Moon, prize-winning novelist Chi Zijian, creates a dazzling epic about an extraordinary woman bearing witness not just to the stories of her tribe but also to the transformation of China.
About the Author
About the Author
Chi Zijian received the Mao Dun Literary Award--the highest honor for a novelist in China--for The Last Quarter of the Moon, which has been translated into ten languages. She is known for her writing that touches on the folklore of Northeast China and is the only Chinese writer to have won the prestigious Lu Xun Literary Award three times for outstanding accomplishment in short fiction and novella. Her other work includes Manchuria; Atop the Mountains; and White Snow, Black Raven, and has been translated into many languages. Zijian was born in Mohe, China, in 1964 and splits her time between there and the city of Harbin.Bruce Humes is the translator of the bestseller Shanghai Baby and now specializes in translating writing by/about China-based Altaic peoples and Silk Road culture. Since 2009 he has hosted the blog Ethnic ChinaLit. He lives in Taiwan and is studying Turkish.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
Praise for The Last Quarter of the Moon"Humes's translation captures the spirit of Chi's lush descriptions of the natural world, as the novel sparks thoughtful introspection about humankind's interactions with fellow people, animals, and nature."--Library Journal "Unsparing and poignant . . . an exceptionally pretty novel and a fascinating look at a people that not many U.S. readers know about. . . . beautifully told."--Kirkus Reviews "The Last Quarter of the Moon is a poetic novel that memorializes a way of being centered on the bonds of family and harmony with the rhythms of nature."--Foreword Reviews, starred review "Chi has an extraordinary gift for storytelling and her steely narrator is a true heroine, surviving war and encroaching modernity. Simply magnificent."--The Times (UK)"The Last Quarter of the Moon is about a life, and a lifestyle, as distant from ours as you can imagine; and entirely different from what English-readers might have come to expect of a Chinese novel. But the story is masterfully told, with simplicity and empathy, in a direct and credible voice that not only feels unlike a translation, but unlike a fiction at all."--The Independent on Sunday"Chi Zijian's beautifully realised novel offers a detailed portrait of a way of life hard to imagine today... The natural beauty that surrounds the Evenki people is celebrated in lyrical prose while the harsher side of mountain life - disease, famine, hungry animals and sudden storms - is described in a matter-of-fact tone... Bruce Humes's skilful translation is pitch-perfect."--The Independent"Chi Zijian's insight into the life of the Evenki tribe is truly remarkable. The reader not only learns much about a shamanistic culture and the rituals surrounding birth, marriage and death but also how to hunt bear and to live with the reindeer."--The Book Trust
Praise for the Seedbank Series"Milkweed's Seedbank series is one of the most exciting and visionary projects in contemporary publishing. Taking the long view, these volumes run parallel to the much-hyped books of the moment to demonstrate the possibility and hope inherent in all great literature."--Stephen Sparks, Point Reyes Books"Through its cultural-linguistic contribution to narrative diversity, Milkweed's Seedbank series is a vital tool in imagining the futures possible for humanity beyond the anthropocene. Bringing works from Greek, K'iche', German, Russian (and more!) whose authors are deeply rooted in their homelands, each voice encountered has resonated with me on a seemingly cellular level--shifting and changing both who I am and can be. I will continue to press these books into the hands of compassionate readers and cannot wait to share the forthcoming titles in the project!"--Erin Pineda, 27th Letter Books"Milkweed as a publishing house has long been championing literary works both fictitious and true to life centered around culture, nature, and environmentalism. The Seedbank series serves as both a marvelous introduction to the books Milkweed provides and as a collection of essential stories that ought to be on everyone's radar. The words behind these front covers highlight life-changing experiences, knowledge, and ways of life from communities that are seldom otherwise heard from in the publishing world through an authentic cultural lens. What I've read from the Seedbank line is phenomenal, and I look forward to spending time with future works in the series."--Andrew King, Secret Garden Books
Praise for the Seedbank Series"Milkweed's Seedbank series is one of the most exciting and visionary projects in contemporary publishing. Taking the long view, these volumes run parallel to the much-hyped books of the moment to demonstrate the possibility and hope inherent in all great literature."--Stephen Sparks, Point Reyes Books"Through its cultural-linguistic contribution to narrative diversity, Milkweed's Seedbank series is a vital tool in imagining the futures possible for humanity beyond the anthropocene. Bringing works from Greek, K'iche', German, Russian (and more!) whose authors are deeply rooted in their homelands, each voice encountered has resonated with me on a seemingly cellular level--shifting and changing both who I am and can be. I will continue to press these books into the hands of compassionate readers and cannot wait to share the forthcoming titles in the project!"--Erin Pineda, 27th Letter Books"Milkweed as a publishing house has long been championing literary works both fictitious and true to life centered around culture, nature, and environmentalism. The Seedbank series serves as both a marvelous introduction to the books Milkweed provides and as a collection of essential stories that ought to be on everyone's radar. The words behind these front covers highlight life-changing experiences, knowledge, and ways of life from communities that are seldom otherwise heard from in the publishing world through an authentic cultural lens. What I've read from the Seedbank line is phenomenal, and I look forward to spending time with future works in the series."--Andrew King, Secret Garden Books
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
Milkweed Editions
Pub date:
2026-01-13
Length:
344 pages
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