Chinese Literature - Li-hua Ying 2010

LIN JINLAN (1923— )
The Dictionary

LIN JINLAN (1923— ). Fiction writer and playwright. Born in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, Lin began his literary career as a playwright. His first collection of plays, Bugu (The Cuckoo Bird), was published in 1956, and in the following decades he mostly wrote short stories about the contemporary lives of intellectuals or simple country folks. Lin places a strong emphasis on plot and language and his stories are noted for their flawless structure and graceful style. In the 1980s, he wrote a series of stories collected in Aidengqiao fengqing (The Customs of the Short-Bench-Bridge), which portrayed the rural communities of his native Zhejiang Province. Other works of his include Chun lei (Thunder in the Spring) and Man cheng fei hua (Flowers Flying All Over the City), both short story collections. See also ROOT-SEEKING LITERATURE; SPOKEN DRAMA.