Ocean of Words:Army Stories [Hardcover]

Ha Jin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1998

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

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Set on China's bleak northern border in the 1970s, when Russia and China were close to war, these short stories describe the life of soldiers, professional officers, and raw recruits, living in constant proximity. In this hierarchical and politically charged world, there is even less privacy than normal in China, highlighting a fundamental difference between Chinese and Western societies. The book provides an unusually brilliant insight into the Chinese psyche, with its preoccupations with food, family, and political standing, and its ambivalent attitudes toward women and animals.

Yet Ocean of Words also makes us aware of the common humanity that we share with Ha Jin's characters. Hunger, fear, sexual embarrassment, curiosity about the outside world are universal emotions, and we find ourselves caring deeply about these men. The title refers to a treasured dictionary in a story that brings together a maladjusted young man and an elderly officer. Ha Jin obviously cares deeply about words; his writing is spare, penetrating, and often funny, as when he describes the embarrassment of the officers at the "politically incorrect" earthiness of an old survivor of the Long March, who by definition must be considered an archetypal revolutionary. In this book, Ha Jin has done for the Chinese army what Zhang Xianliang did so powerfully for the prison camp in works like Grass Soup. -- John Stevenson --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Set on the Chinese-Russian border in the early 1970s, these short stories by this poet (Between Silences) and veteran of the People's Army, quickly draws the reader into Chinese army life with all its rivalries, propaganda and poignancy. "Dragon Head" follows a fascinating battle of wits between an army commander and a local militia commander ("If this were the Old China, no doubt Dragon Head would become a small warlord") through the twists and turns of betrayal and political intrigue. In "Miss Jee," about a soldier who is the helpless butt of his comrades' jokes, Jin also shows a genuine talent for humor. But the author is at his best when telling the stories of soldiers forced to choose between ideology and love. Whether it is love of a woman or love of knowledge, Jin's characters make hard choices that will move not just readers interested in China or the army life, but any reader vulnerable to good writing and simple human drama.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Zoland Books; First Hardcover Edition edition (1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0944072909
• ISBN-13: 978-0944072905
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,547,732 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ha Jin's Short Stories Have Tall Stature, May 9, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Ocean of Words Army Stories (Paperback)

Ha Jin brilliantly evokes emotion in short stories that may take some an epic novel to create the same impact. His words are sunbeams bouncing on desolate land and you want to continue despite the heartbreak that you may only survive simply to survive. Never to fully live in the light. He is the most eloquent writer and he allows us to view a world not known to most Americans: China under Mao. Be swept away with words and emotions.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ocean full of Stars, August 9, 2004

By 

Tory "toryofmaine" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ocean of Words Army Stories (Paperback)

When I read Ocean of Words, I was immediately reminded of two works by "the enemy" from this work, Lermontov's A Hero of Our Time and Tolstoy's Hadji Murad. All three works deal with fear, nature and the other. All three are strangely at peace with their situation and surrounding. All three are great. After reading this collection, I ran out and bought The Bridegroom and Waiting. Neither of these works rose to the level of this collection. This is one of the best short story collections published in the last twenty years. I would recommend this collection to anyone.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful short stories, August 28, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Ocean of Words Army Stories (Paperback)

The stories by Hai Jin are superb! The are easy to read and always touching. There is no story in this book that I didn't like it!