The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2012 - current news items

The Guardian, 12 April 2012: Independent foreign fiction prize shortlist announced - Chinese novel about Aids scandal up against Umberto Eco for £10,000 prize
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/apr/12/independent-foreign-fiction-prize-2012-shortlist?newsfeed=true

The Independent, 13 April 2012: 'Independent' Foreign Fiction Prize shortlist: A whole world in their words
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/independent-foreign-fiction-prize-shortlist-a-whole-world-in-their-words-7640234.html

(from The Independent): Dream of Ding Village by Yan Lianke, tr. Cindy Carter (Corsair)
Xiaolu Guo (one of the judges): "This is a brave, dark and poetic account of modern Chinese malaise. Through his description of the many lives touched by an Aids epidemic sweeping a village, Yan Lianke proves himself not only as a writer of political vision, but also one with a unique narrative voice. His tale is told from the point of view of a dead child. Through the child, we witnesses the deaths of HIV-infected villagers, as well as the actions the villagers take to easy the pain of the dying and bring hope to those who remain alive. Yan Lianke's prose, based on a true story, combines an oral storytelling tradition with daring experiment - something rare in contemporary Chinese literature. I urge anyone interested in modern China to read this book."