HOPE AND LIFE (Volume 1)/有生 (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781915865151)

"It portrays the tenacious spirit of countless people and captures the soul of a nation that has endured trials and tribulations yet continues to endure and thrive.

书写万千生民坚韧不拔的精神，为历尽劫波又繁衍不息的民族立心

""The Beginning and End of Life"" is a sprawling epic novel that Hu Xuewen devoted eight years to completing. The story begins with the act of childbirth-centering on the matriarchal figure ""Ancestral Granny,"" who has delivered over twelve thousand babies-and branches out into the lives of those she brought into the world, constructing a vast and profound literary universe. The narrative spans more than a century, from the late Qing dynasty to the present day, condensed within the framework of a single day and night of storytelling by Ancestral Granny. With remarkable patience, the author unveils the grandeur and minutiae of a hundred years of human existence, portraying the struggles of ordinary people on this land and capturing the essence of life within a community.

Driven by a deep love for his homeland and its people, and guided by keen insights into rural culture and the national character, Hu Xuewen writes with the ambition of creating a national allegory and a life epic. He delves into the moral codes, traditions, blood and geographical ties, and power dynamics of rural society. Through vividly portrayed characters and a profound sense of destiny, he roots the narrative in the soil, gives voice to the lives of the people, and captures the soul of a century-old China that has endured countless trials yet continues to thrive and renew itself.

《有生》是胡学文潜心八年完成的一部长篇巨制。这是一个起始于接"生"的故事，它以接生了一万两千余人的祖奶为主干，以被祖奶接引到人世的众生为枝叶，为我们构建了一个壮阔而又浩瀚的文学世界。小说的叙事时间从晚清到当下，时间跨度有一百余年，被浓缩在祖奶一个白天和一个夜晚的讲述中。作者用了足够的耐心向我们讲述百年人生的庞大和细小，写出了大地上活人的难处，写出了一方土地上众人的生命本相。

胡学文满怀对故土和乡民的爱，秉持着对乡土文化和国民性的深刻洞察，以民族寓言、生命史诗的宏阔格局和叙事雄心，将笔触深入乡土社会的法礼德道、血缘地缘、权力分配等方面，通过有血有肉的人物群像，在一种宏阔的命运感中，为乡土立根，为众生立命，为历尽劫波又繁衍不息的百年中国立心。