Winner of Tartt Fiction Award, this gripping collection tracks the effects of China's Cultural Revolution from its beginning to the present.
Apologies Forthcoming
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From the Publisher
A totally illuminating collection of stories centered around China's Cultural Revolution and its aftermath, which, as we learn, continues even today. Xujun Eberlein lived in China during that turmoil and now makes her home in America. This, her first story collection, is both disturbing and enthralling.
About the Author
Xujun Eberlein grew up in Chongqing, China, and moved to the United States in the summer of 1988. After receiving a Ph.D. from MIT in the spring of 1995, and winning an award for her dissertation, she joined a small but ambitious high tech company. On Thanksgiving 2003, she gave up tech for writing. She has since won many literary awards. Her stories and personal essays have been published in the United States, Canada, England, Kenya, and Hong Kong, in magazines such as AGNI, Walrus, PRISM International, StoryQuarterly, Stand and Kwani. Her debut story collection Apologies Forthcoming won the 2007 Tartt Fiction Award and will be published in May 2008. She hosts the literary and cultural blog Inside-out China.
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More About the Author
Xujun Eberlein grew up in Chongqing, China, and moved to the United States in the summer of 1988. After receiving a Ph.D. from MIT in the spring of 1995, and winning an award for her dissertation, she joined a small but ambitious high tech company. On Thanksgiving 2003, she gave up algorithms for writing. She has since won a bunch of literary awards. Her stories and personal essays have been published in the United States, Canada, England, Kenya, and Hong Kong, in magazines such as AGNI, Walrus, PRISM International, StoryQuarterly, Stand, and Kwani. Her debut story collection "Apologies Forthcoming" won the 2007 Tartt Fiction Award and was published in June 2008. She is the recipient of a 2008 artist fellowship in fiction/creative nonfiction from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By Kirsten
Format:Paperback
In Aplogies Forthcoming, Xujun Eberlein describes a world where intelligent women have such limited choices that they consider suicide, children are sent from their homes to labor in far away fields, and men do not apologize for destroying each others property and dreams. Set during and after China's Cultural Revolution, this well written collection of eight stories tells tales of individual hardship: Sail, whose older sister dies serving in the Red Guard; Ou Homg, whose father is accused of being a "capitalist roader" and publicly humiliated; Wang Qiang, who tries and fails to bring his brother back to his home from the countryside; and others, whose stories are no less compelling. Despite hard times, the characters search for love and fulfillment, and each story presents not only a unique view into the character's world, but a very human portrait of the people inhabiting the pages.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Deftly showcasing the human condition with a particular flair for realism
August 8, 2008
Format:Paperback
Growing up in Chongquing, China, Xujun Eberlein came to America in the summer of 1988 to advance her education. Receiving a PhD from MIT in 1995, after graduation she became a computer algorithm developer until 2003 when she embarked upon a new career as a writer, for which she has since been awarded a number of literary honors for her stories and personal essays published in the United States, Canada, England, Kenya and Hong Kong. Xujun Eberlein currently hosts the literary and cultural blog 'Inside-out China'. Now eight of her stories have been collected and published by the Livingston Press as "Apologies Forthcoming". These erudite and compelling stories focus on the experiences of people during China's 'Cultural Revolution' which saw the intellectual class of a generation of Chinese under Mao subjected to humiliation and repression. Included in this outstanding anthology of realistic fiction are Snow Line; Pivot Point; Feathers; Men Don't apologize; Watch the Thrill; disciple of the Masses; The Randomness of Love; and Second Encounter. Documenting Xujun Eberlein as an exceptional talented author, "Apologies Forthcoming" is especially recommended to readers with an interest in superbly presented and engaging fiction deftly showcasing the human condition with a particular flair for realism in both character and dialogue.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I am charmed by Apologies Forthcoming but haven't been able to put my finger on precisely why. Xujun Eberlein writes with quiet intimacy. The stories are like listening to a really interesting person at a social gathering... someone uninhibited, unafraid to admit earthy things to a stranger.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Powerful Collection of Stories
A powerful collection of stories taking place during and after the Cultural Revolution in China. Intimate, melancholy, comic, sensuous, the stories cover a broad range: the... Read more
Published 14 months ago by Lost In a Book
5.0 out of 5 stars
A rare glimpse, so softly beautiful
I can only comment on the craft of XuJun's writing, for others have already made excellent informational explanations about the content of these riveting stories. Read more
Published 23 months ago by cyn teed
5.0 out of 5 stars
A writer who will soon be a household name!
It may be a cliche to say it (and I'm loathe to use cliches), but it's inescapably true that once you start reading this story collection you cannot put it down until you're... Read more
Published on April 9, 2009 by A. Norsworthy
4.0 out of 5 stars
"Think three times" ....
An approximate quote from the book:
When dealing with people "proceed gingerly and think three times before speaking"
This is a quick review; it has been over two... Read more
When dealing with people "proceed gingerly and think three times before speaking"
This is a quick review; it has been over two... Read more
Published on February 23, 2009 by mike
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Short Review's review of Apologies Forthcoming
Reviewed by John Matthew Fox
Each story in Xujun Eberlein's Apologies Forthcoming is set within or haunted by the Chinese Cultural revolution, invoking the specters of... Read more
Each story in Xujun Eberlein's Apologies Forthcoming is set within or haunted by the Chinese Cultural revolution, invoking the specters of... Read more
Published on December 25, 2008 by Tania Hershman
4.0 out of 5 stars
Thought-provoking
Veerrry interesting collection of thought-provoking stories that expose the deep ugliness of Mao's Cultural Revolution. Read more
Published on December 12, 2008 by Linda Austin
5.0 out of 5 stars
worthy of the word AWESOME
One of my pet peeves about Americans is the overuse of the word "awesome" but this is the most fitting word to describe this fresh new author. Read more
Published on October 16, 2008 by NoBooksNoLife
5.0 out of 5 stars
Waiting for Cultural Reconciliation in China
Everyday Chinese life and the Chinese Cultural Revolution clash in Xujun Eberlein's collection of short stories on love and loss. Read more
Published on September 10, 2008 by Story Circle Book Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
History written by the survivors
Wow. This is a stunning short story collection, a frank look into the minds and hearts of ordinary Chinese citizens who have lived through their government's folly-filled shifts in... Read more
Published on August 30, 2008 by Susan O'Neill
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is why I read fiction
This impressive collection of short stories gives the reader a glimpse into the world of China's Cultural Revolution and its legacy. Read more
Published on July 30, 2008 by Donna G. Storey
