Dr Belinda Jack's book on Reading published in Chinese by OUP in Hong Kong
A ‘traditional Chinese’ edition of Belinda Jack’s Reading (in the Very Short Introduction series) has been published by Oxford University Press in Hong Kong.
The Japanese translation of Reading came out in 2019 along with the English edition, but as the book treats the question of censorship at some length and discusses the position in China where print publishing is highly-controlled, and URLs are regularly blocked, this is a surprise.
Professor Rana Mitter OBE FBA (Professor of the History and Politics of Modern China at the Department of Politics and International Relations, Oxford University), author of the VSI on modern China, wrote:
‘Belinda Jack's VSI on Reading has been published in a full-form character version for marketing in Hong Kong and Taiwan. It discusses censorship in China, among other matters – this would suggest that despite the severe narrowing of areas of political discussion in Hong Kong since 2020, there are still sensitive areas that can be discussed there but would likely be off-limits in the mainland.’
‘Belinda Jack's VSI on Reading has been published in a full-form character version for marketing in Hong Kong and Taiwan. It discusses censorship in China, among other matters – this would suggest that despite the severe narrowing of areas of political discussion in Hong Kong since 2020, there are still sensitive areas that can be discussed there but would likely be off-limits in the mainland.’
The book is both a history of reading and an exploration of its power – to inform, to move, to stimulate, to inspire, to subvert – and more.
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