{"product_id":"new-story-of-the-stone-by-jianren-wu-9780231203470","title":"New Story of the Stone","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne of China's first works of science fiction, \u003cem\u003eNew Story of the Stone\u003c\/em\u003e is a belated twentieth-century sequel to the beloved eighteenth-century masterpiece \u003cem\u003eStory of the Stone\u003c\/em\u003e (more famously known as \u003cem\u003eDream of the Red Chamber\u003c\/em\u003e). The story follows protagonist Jia Baoyu, borrowed from the original story, as he is dramatically hurled forward over a hundred years from his own time into a bewildering future: first the decadent, semicolonised late Qing China of the author's time, and later an astonishing high-tech Confucian utopia called the Realm of Civilization.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBaoyu is equally disoriented in both places: in China proper, he is distressed by the growth of foreign influence and weakening of the traditional moral code in favour of capitalist consumerism and selfish gain; in the Realm of Civilization, he is amazed by everything he encounters—from flying cars and ingenious medical technologies to the perfectly moral populace. Seen through Baoyu's eyes, the Realm is everything that late Qing China has failed to be and offers a hopeful vision of what it might yet become.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis quick-paced romp deftly highlights some of the major preoccupations of the tumultuous final decade of China's last dynasty while raising important existential questions about China's future. Enlivened by author Wu Jianren's vivid imagination and wry sense of humour, this playful, satirical adventure is essential reading for lovers of science fiction and Chinese literature in translation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46853279023340,"sku":"9780231203470","price":56.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/8091403482270.jpg?v=1759194783","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/new-story-of-the-stone-by-jianren-wu-9780231203470","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}