by Shan Sa; translated by Adriana Hunter
Published by Random House | Alfred A. Knopf (2004)
ISBN 978-1400032280
Description:
As the Japanese military invades 1930s Manchuria, a young
girl approaches her own sexual coming of age. Drawn into a
complex triangle with two boys, she distracts herself from
the onslaught of adulthood by playing the game of go with
strangers in a public square--and yet the force of desire,
like the occupation, proves inevitable. Unbeknownst to the
girl who plays go, her most worthy and frequent opponent is
a Japanese soldier in disguise. Captivated by her beauty as
much as by her bold, unpredictable approach to the strategy
game, the soldier finds his loyalties challenged. Is there
room on the path to war for that most revolutionary of acts:
falling in love?
About the Author:
Shan Sa was born in 1972 in Beijing. In 1990 she left China
for France, where she studied in Paris and worked for two
years with the painter Balthus. Her two previous novels were
awarded the Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman and the Prix Cazes.
The Girl Who Played Go won the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize
in 2004. This is her first book to be published in the United
States.
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