The Woman Back From Moscow: A Novel

(Paperback)

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Through the life of a remarkable woman-based on pioneering stage director Sun Weishi (1921-1968)-this epic novel immerses us in the multifaceted history of China's Communist Party. A powerful, insightful account from the National Book Award-winning author, who came of age during the Cultural Revolution. As a promising young actress, Sun Weishi made the critical decision to pursue her studies in Moscow-with the blessing of her influential adoptive father, Zhou Enlai, and Mao himself. The valuable insights she gained there during World War II, most notably the significance of characters' inner lives, would enable her to excel back in China, where she produced works by Chekhov and Gogol, and other socially progressive dramas, such as an adaptation of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Her striking career as China's first female director of modern spoken drama (Huaju) would be derailed with the advent of the Cultural Revolution in 1966, however, which put her once again at odds with an old enemy-Jiang Qing, a fellow actress who schemed her way to the top as Mao's fourth and final wife. Through the decades-long rivalry between these two complex women, and their differing approaches to the men in power who shaped their lives, Ha Jin deftly explores the ideals of communism and the reality of the Chinese Communist Party. At the same time, the novel captivates us with Sun Weishi's personal struggles and triumphs, as she navigates friendship, love, art, and politics amidst the great events of the twentieth century.

Reviews

The Woman Back from Moscow is a brilliant historical novel of a young woman who dares to pursue her artistic dream amid the political shadow of China from the late 1930s to the 1960s, a poignant revelation of Chinese affinity to Russian culture and politics, and a penetrating study of the powerful Communist Party leaders, whose love and lust spell the rise and fall of those close to them, all told in Ha Jins signature prose, simple yet hypnotic. The Woman Back from Moscow reminds me of Wolf Hall, in its epic range and intensity and importance. Readers of historical fiction and literary fiction will relish this masterpiece. Weina Dai Randel, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Last Rose of Shanghai and Night Angels

The Woman Back from Moscow is an enthralling tale of courage, conviction, and resilience. Ha Jins evocative portrayal of Sun Yomei Weishian idealistic actress turned stage directorreflects his meticulous research and powerful imagination. During the Cultural Revolution, Sun gets caught in the cross hairs of Jiang Ching, Mao Zedongs vengeful wife. Deeply compelling. Vanessa Hua, author of Forbidden City

Praise for Waiting:

Winner of the National Book Award, PEN / Faulkner Award, and Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize

Ha Jins novel could hardly be less theatrical, yet were immediately engaged by its narrative structure, by its wry humor and by the subtle, startling shifts it produces in our understanding of characters and their situation.New York Times Book Review

Subtle and complexhis best work to date. A moving meditation on the effects of time upon love.Washington Post

A simple love story that transcends cultural barriers...Convincing and rich in detail...Filled with an earthy poetic grace.Chicago Tribune

Author Bio

Ha Jin grew up in mainland China and served in the People's Liberation Army in his teens for five years. After leaving the army, he worked for three years at a railroad company in a remote northeastern city, Jiamusi, and then went to college in Harbin, majoring in English. He has published in English nine novels, four story collections, four volumes of poetry, a book of essays, and a biography of Li Bai. His novel Waiting won the National Book Award for Fiction, the PEN/Faulkner Award, and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Ha Jin is William Fairfield Warren Distinguished Professor in English and Creative Writing at Boston University, and he has been elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His writing has been translated into more than thirty languages.