A History of Modern Chinese Fiction

A History of Modern Chinese Fiction was first published in 1961 and has ever since become a classic in the study of twentieth-century Chinese fiction. This volume accounts the development of Chinese fiction from the Literary Revolution in 1917 to the early 60s. C. T. Hsia delved into the works of important writers such as Lu Hs n, Pa Chin, Lao She, Eileen Chang, and Ch'ien Chung-shu. In Hsia's own words, "the literary historian's first task is always the discovery and appraisal of excellence," and in this belief he re-evaluated the important figures in modern Chinese literature, and "discovered" those who had not been given proper attention. To this day, A History of Modern Chinese Fiction is still a must-read for students interested in modern Chinese literature.

C. T. Hsia (1921-2013) set a milestone in the study of Chinese literature. His classic works include A History of Modern Chinese Fiction and The Classic Chinese Novel. He retired from Columbia University in 1991 and was Professor Emeritus of Chinese since then. He was awarded the title of academician at Academia Sinica in 2006.