When I received the manuscript of Words Like Stars from Teacher Qunfang, I quickly printed it out and then read it carefully, knowing that such text is not suitable for quick browsing on a computer. Moreover, a book that discusses words with such respect and elegance seems to have a deeper meaning only when printed on paper.
Teacher Qunfang is a classmate I met while attending a children’s literature workshop in Jinhua led by Mr. Jiang Feng. She’s a longtime frontline Chinese language teacher, but contrary to my stereotype of Chinese teachers, she possesses a genuinely fairy-tale-inspired spirit. I once listened to her describe how she taught a first-grade reading class, where they sat on the lawn on a beautiful sunny day, reading “The Runaway Bunny.” I imagined the scene and was captivated. Later, when I read her essay collection, “Quietly Listening to the Flowers Bloom,” I realized how deeply she loved words. Her writing exudes a quiet sensibility and the tranquility that perhaps characterizes the talented women of Jiangnan. I wondered if she hadn’t become a Chinese language teacher. The four characters she chose for the title perfectly capture the sentiment of a gardener, listening with boundless joy to the sound of each blossom blooming flower.
This new book before me is also called “Chinese Character Course,” so my initial suspicion was that it might be more like a lesson plan or classroom transcript. But after reading it in one sitting, I realized it’s more like 99 essays about Chinese characters. In recent years, books that explore Chinese characters with a general audience in the form of essays have become increasingly common. I’m familiar with Tang Nuo’s “The Story of Characters,” which is cited several times in this book, and Swedish sinologist Lin Xili’s “The Kingdom of Chinese Characters.” Interestingly, this book, primarily aimed at explaining Chinese character culture to adult readers abroad, has been repackaged and released in China as “The Kingdom of Chinese Characters for Children.” So, compared to these books, what kind of book is “Characters Like Stars”? I think it’s accurate to say that it’s a collection of Chinese character essays written specifically for children.
While the author of this book is not an expert scholar in Chinese character studies, her long-standing experience as a Chinese language teacher brings her a unique advantage. She is deeply familiar with the characters children encounter daily, whether from textbooks, the ancient poems and prose they frequently recite, or the literature they read. The author effortlessly draws upon these raw materials, creating a stage (or, if you prefer, a “classroom”) where the characters they are supposed to present take center stage, performing with ease and naturalness. I believe children will feel no sense of distance as they watch these performances. They may be deeply impressed by the protagonists, but more likely, they will find that the raw materials used for the stage design have suddenly come alive, no longer seeming so daunting. Furthermore, they may discover that learning Chinese has a truly interesting side beyond simply preparing for exams.
Because I often translate children’s books for them, people often ask me how to write (or translate) texts that children will find interesting. This is a very puzzling question. I don’t know of any writing tricks to achieve this, but in my experience, you must first be an interesting person, especially one with a certain childlike charm. To put it more mysteriously, this childlike charm may largely come from connecting with your own childhood.
In my opinion, Teacher Qunfang possesses a deep connection to childhood. Reading her essays on Chinese characters for children often brings back memories of her own childhood. When she discusses the character “古,” the image of her mother knitting and telling her stories to sleep resurfaces. Those dreamlike stories are deeply woven into her childhood memories, a truly sweet memory. When she discusses the character “看,” her mother’s presence reappears, her concerned gaze superimposed on the beautiful memories of her childhood in the mountain village…
Perhaps because we were born in the same generation, I particularly enjoyed the many food descriptions that Teacher Qunfang included with her explanations of Chinese characters. Perhaps they were part of our shared childhood memories. For example, when discussing the character “niang,” (meaning “to brew”), she poetically described the entire rice wine-making process. The most moving part was the tasting sequence: “When the children couldn’t wait any longer, their mother would scoop a large bowl of fermented rice wine from the jar, add a beaten egg, a few red dates, and simmer it in the pot. Sometimes, she’d also add a few slices of brown dried longan. The sweet aroma of the wine would waft all the way over the courtyard wall. The children’s cheeks would flush from the fermented rice wine, and their mothers would lovingly take their hands and let them go to bed. They slept soundly and sweetly.” I believe that reading such words will help children understand that words can have fragrance and color.
In daily life, words are simply a medium for use. However, with frequent and prolonged use, people may forget the cultural connotations they originally carried. Conversely, completely stripping words of their cultural connotations and relying solely on rote memorization can be tedious and boring, especially for children. Those of us who are proficient in Chinese characters have forgotten this pain, but we may face similar challenges when learning a foreign language. For example, I once encountered the English word “laconic.” The dictionary definition is “concise and concise.” It seems simple, but I couldn’t remember it. God knows why foreigners had to combine these letters to create this meaning! Later, I stumbled upon its etymology and discovered that it comes from the Greek region of Laconia. The Spartans, representing that region, were known for their taciturn temperament and courage. Therefore, the original meaning of “laconic” simply means “like a Laconian.” Over time, it gradually evolved into its current dictionary definition. And when I learned this story, it became very easy to remember this word.
From the perspective of young readers, “Words Like Stars” can indeed serve as an interesting “Chinese character lesson,” helping them to joyfully learn some Chinese characters. But I think even more valuable is that it may help them fall in love with the culture that has long been embedded in these characters, and in turn, develop a curiosity about human language and writing as a whole, and a willingness to diligently explore them.
As the author demonstrates many times in the book, the beginning of exploration is actually very simple: when you come across a word or phrase that you find interesting, you can’t help but ask: Where does it come from? Boldly explore further and you will find a new world as brilliant as the stars.
Ajia …
Written in Beijing on March 6, 2017
