Bøker av Christopher New

Hong Kong's demi-monde at the height of the British Empire... Franziska Goldmann, an opera singer fallen on hard times, has become the star courtesan in 19th century Hong Kong. A chance encounter with Queen Victoria's musical second son seems to offer Franziska an opportunity to resume her career as a singer. But it is the other unpredictable characters in her life, including her German anarchist lover and a devious procurer, who may ultimately determine her destiny. The haunting story of a lone woman's struggle to escape her fate, Gage Street Courtesan unfolds against the ironically observed background of colonial society, from the waterfront brothels to the mansions of the rich.

Hong Kong, 2012. Dimitri Johnson learns that he is dying. Stunned by his doctor's prognosis, he nevertheless makes his ritual annual pilgrimage to the candlelight vigil for the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre. But this year, he thinks, may be his last. So little time remains. Over on the mainland, Chinese academic Yu Guodong is arrested for protesting against an official land grab in his ancestral village. Guodong's wife appeals to Dimitri's family for help, but taking on the forces of the state is fraught with danger. And isn't it simply a fool's errand, anyway? A powerful family drama set against the backdrop of the burgeoning protest movement that led to Hong Kong's Umbrella Revolution, Chinese Spring explores the reality of democracy and dissent in modern China. And begs the question: have things really changed for the post-Tiananmen generation?

This work introduces the philosophy of literature from an analytic perspective. Topics include: the definition of literature; the distinction between oral and written literature and the identity of literary works; and the nature of fiction.