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Bezig met laden... Ocean of Words: Army Stories (1996)door Ha Jin
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 Meld je aan bij LibraryThing om erachter te komen of je dit boek goed zult vinden. Op dit moment geen Discussie gesprekken over dit boek.  mvblair | Aug 8, 2020 |    )1  SeriousGrace | Feb 21, 2014 |  ) helka | Sep 22, 2009 |  )1 shawnd | Dec 5, 2007 | geen besprekingen | voeg een bespreking toe
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Winner of the PEN/Hemingway Award The place is the chilly border between Russia and China. The time is the early 1970s when the two giants were poised on the brink of war. And the characters in this thrilling collection of stories are Chinese soldiers who must constantly scrutinize the enemy even as they themselves are watched for signs of the fatal disease of bourgeois liberalism. In Ocean of Words, the Chinese writer Ha Jin explores the predicament of these simple, barely literate men with breathtaking concision and humanity. From amorous telegraphers to a pugnacious militiaman, from an inscrutable Russian prisoner to an effeminate but enthusiastic recruit, Ha Jin's characters possess a depth and liveliness that suggest Isaac Babel's Cossacks and Tim O'Brien's GIs. Ocean of Words is a triumphant volume, poignant, hilarious, and harrowing. "A compelling collection of stories, powerful in their unity of theme and rich in their diversity of styles." --New York Times Book Review "Extraordinary. . . . [These stories are shot through with wit and offer glimpses of human motivation that defy retelling. . . . Read them all." --Boston Globe "An exceptional new talent, capable of wringing rich surprises out of austere materials." --Portland Oregonian Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
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 Google Books — Bezig met laden...GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde: (3.8)
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Written in Ha Jin's usual concise style, "Ocean of Words" is a fine collection of about a dozen short stories. These stories have much more action and move much faster than Ha Jin's novels, which I also enjoy.
Each story takes place along the tense Russian/Chinese border in the 1970's. We meet many different characters, mostly men, whose roles in the army differ. There are a few characters who fall in love, including one who becomes infatuated with the clicking style of a telegraph operator. There is a veteran of the Long March who offers a less than heroic narrative. There is a member of the local militia guard who steals hats from the military, causing the military to have fits with how to deal with the locals. There is also the story of a young scholar is taken in by a general and whose most prized possession is an old dictionary titled "Ocean of Words."
The stories can all be read separately. There is no continuity between them besides the setting. Together though, they form a very enjoyable and somewhat humorous look at a very difficult time for soldiers. (