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Helen Wang is a UK-based translator and co-founder of Chinese Books for Young Readers (2016-). She works collaboratively with Paper Republic, the Leeds Centre for New Chinese Writing, World Kid Lit, and Global Literature in Libraries Initiative. She was active on Twitter: China Fiction Book Club, with Nicky Harman (2012-2025); Translated World (2013-2025).
Awards:
2017 Marsh Award for Literature in Translation for her translation of Bronze and Sunflower by Cao Wenxuan
2017 Chen Bochui Special Contribution Award, for translation and increasing visibility of Chinese children's books
2025 Shenzhen Reading Month's Translator of the Year
Other publications
The Music of Ink at the British Museum (edited volume featuring Yang Lian, Romesh Gunesekera, Denis Brown, Qu Lei Lei, Rohan de Saram, Zeng Laide and Wang Tao), Saffron Books, London, 2012. Info here
Is Gao Xingjian’s play Chezhan merely a blind worship of modern Western plays as the critic He Wen claims? How far can Chezhan be compared with Beckett’s Waiting for Godot?, Bulletin of the British Association for Chinese Studies, 1986, pp. 83-89. Available here
Interviews and short pieces
Interview, with Julie Sullivan, in Words and Pictures (SCBWI), 7 Oct 2018.
Interview, with Nanette McGuinness, in SCBWI, The Blog, 7 Sept 2017.
Interview, with Eric Abrahamsen, for Paper Republic, April 2016. in English and in Chinese
Interview, with Daniel Hahn, in Books for Keeps.
On "Bronze and Sunflower" in LARB China Blog, 13 April 2016
Translating Children's Books - a short piece for Books from Taiwan (2015)
Learning about Chinese children's books - interview with Zoe Toft for Playing by the Book, 27 April 2015
Bronze and Sunflower - Ann Morgan's Book of the Month, April 2015
Guest Interview: Helen Wang on Children's Book Translation, interviewed by Avery Fischer Udagawa for Cynthia Leitich Smith's "Cynsations" blog, 26 May 2015
Review by Nicky Harman of Bronze and Sunflower in Tribune 6 March 2015
| Small Town | by Li Jingrui | October 11, 2018 |
| Self-Portrait | by Zhang Xinxin | April 21, 2016 |
| Ying Yang Alley | by Fan Xiaoqing | April 14, 2016 |
| Sunshine in Winter | by Shi Kang tr. Michelle Deeter, Killiana Liu, Juliet Vine and Helen Wang | January 14, 2016 |
| A Second Pregnancy, 1980 | by Lu Min | November 03, 2015 |
| Xie Bomao R.I.P. | by Lu Min | October 29, 2015 |
| Crows | by Cao Wenxuan | September 24, 2015 |
| Missing | by Li Jingrui | August 06, 2015 |
The Paper Republic database exists for reference purposes only. We are not the publisher of these works, are not responsible for their contents, and cannot provide digital or paper copies.
By Helen Wang, August 18, '12
How Long Is Forever? Two Novellas, by Tie Ning.
Shanghai Press & Publishing Development Company, 2011, ISBN 978-1-60652-152-6
Distributed by University of Hawaii Press.
The novellas are How Long Is Forever? and The Woman Opposite.
By Helen Wang, August 16, '12
Pai Hua Zi and the Clever Girl: A Graphic Novel by Zhang Xinxin.
Published digitally, 20 pages of this book are available as a sample. This is Part 1 of the English edition. Part 2 and Chinese edition to follow soon.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/pai-hua-zi-clever-girl-vol./id553372788?mt=11&ls=1
By Helen Wang, August 2, '12
http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/23241.China_s_Cultural_Revolution_and_its_aftermath_in_fiction_and_memoir
This list of 79 books is from goodreads.com, and was created by someone called Hannah on 1 August. It's not always on target, but gives an idea of which books general readers are recommending to others, the average rating for each book and the number of ratings it has received.
Here are the Top Ten on the list...
By Helen Wang, June 5, '12
MCLC LIST
From: tom moran moran@middlebury.edu
Subject: contributors for fiction writers volume
Contributors are needed for the Modern Chinese Fiction Writers, 1950-2000 volume of the Dictionary of Literary Biography (DLB) series that is produced by Bruccoli, Clark, Layman and published by Gale. The book is co-edited by Tom Moran and Dianna Xu.
By Helen Wang, June 2, '12
A recent piece on this website, raised the issues of racism and sexism (perceived or real) in fiction.
These are just some of the issues that face translators, publishers and readers. For a heated discussion on what is and is not acceptable in children's literature, including children's literature in translation, see this recent piece in The Guardian and the 100+ comments that follow it...
By Helen Wang, June 2, '12
From Winstonsdad's Blog:
"I m sure somewhere last year I heard some one in an interview ,they said the 21st century was going to be the century of the Chinese novel .So lets start with the Great chinese novel ,any one that reads this blog ,I m sure there are a few people know I struggle with Chinese fiction ,I feel what may be classed a the great Chinese novel hasn’t been written China is so fast-moving in the last few years you feel a book that could capture the feel of one of these Mega cities .The books I have read tend to deal with social issues and the moves from country to town ,rather than a look as Chinese culture as a whole in these mega-cities and how it effect people everyday .They are great books but not what may be classed as great Chinese novel."
Winstonsdad also reviewed Yan Lianke's Dream of Ding Village (tr. Cindy Carter) and Ma Jian's Stick Out Your Tongue (tr. Flora Drew), see his section on China
By Helen Wang, April 28, '12
During my challenge on Paper Republic, I wanted to find out more about Chinese literature in France: who is translating it, and who is publishing it. After hours of surfing, I had produced a list, but I didn't really have a feel for what I was doing. So I asked Bertrand Mialaret (editor of the website www.mychinesebooks.com) if he could help. He has produced two really helpful lists for us, which are now posted on this website under Resources for Translators.
Thank you, Bertrand!
By Helen Wang, April 25, '12
China in Ten Words by Yu Hua, Duckworth £16.99 (4/5 stars), reviewed by Siobhan Murphy in The Metro (free newspaper, London), 25 April 2012, p. 39. The translator, not named in the review, is Allan H. Barr.
I'm posting this because it is the second review of a Chinese novel that I’ve spotted this year in The Metro (free London newspaper). The first was Geling Yan’s The Flowers of War, translated by Nicky Harman. Maybe coincidence, or maybe the Arts Editor is taking an interest in Chinese fiction?
By Helen Wang, April 24, '12
http://cadensa.bl.uk/cgi-bin/webcat
While looking for podcasts and recordings, I asked at the British Library. The curator/librarian provided the following info:
To browse the British Library Sound and Moving Image Catalogue, got the website, select advanced search, and check out the language and type menus.
By Helen Wang, April 21, '12
From MCLC mailing list (MCLC@lists.service.ohio-state.edu) https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/mclc
Chinese highlights: An extensive interview with Hsia Yü and the other editors of Xianzai Shi (Poetry Now)--Yung Man-Han, Ling Yü, Hung Hung and Tseng Shumei on their latest issue, conducted by Dylan Suher and Rachel Hui-Yu Tang--accompanied by an immersive slideshow of erasurist poetry from the journal; an excerpt of Alai's King Gesar via new contributing editors Howard Goldblatt and Sylvia Lin; and a new translation of a poem by Li Li, via Eleanor Goodman. There's also Sim Yee Chiang's and Sayuri Okamoto's new translation of a short story by Kou Reishi (黄霊芝), who has the distinction of being the last living Japanese-language writer in Taiwan.
By Helen Wang, April 21, '12
Interview with Yan Geling
Interview with Mo Yan
By Helen Wang, April 21, '12
http://www.granta.com/New-Writing
16 April - Flying Towards a Country of Rain, poem by Wang Yin (tr. Andrea Lingenfelter)
17 April - Petty Thief, short story by A Yi (tr. by Alice Xin Liu)
18 April - Shen Congwen: A Letter, tr. by Alice Xin Liu
19 April - Podcast of Mo Yan, interviewed by John Freeman
20 April - Solitude, poem by Huang Canran (tr. Judith Roche)
By Helen Wang, April 19, '12
Just published! Ten stories from urban China, by Ho Sin Tung, Cao Kou, Jie Chen, Yi Sha, Zhang Zhihao, Han Dong, Ding Liying, Xu Zechen, Diao Dou and Zhu Wen.
Published by Comma Press, 2012, ISBN 978-1905583461
www.commapress.co.uk
By Helen Wang, April 18, '12
From Michel Hockx: We are pleased to announce the launch of the JOURNAL OF THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR CHINESE STUDIES (JBACS), the new official journal of the British Association for Chinese Studies (BACS).
By Helen Wang, April 15, '12
A few weeks ago I took on a challenge – to post something on Paper Republic every day until the London Book Fair (see more here). The LBF starts tomorrow, so my challenge is now over! I’ve learnt a lot in the process. If you’re interested, read on…
