Description
Book SynopsisThe voices of ordinary women in China's War of Resistance against Japan
Trade ReviewHong Kong Book Prize (for Chinese translation), 2014.
"Prefaced with thoughtful analysis and commentary by the author, transcripts of interviews with twenty subjects feature a range of voices that together weave a multilayered and gendered narrative of China's wartime history, while offering refreshing insights into the nature of suffering, survival, and resistance during times of war and national crisis."--
The Historian"A fascinating glimpse into a long-neglected aspect of Chinese history and the history of World War II."--
Asian Affairs: An American Review"The contributions of
Echoes of Chongqing are so substantial that it is sure to be a foundational text for future studies of gender and the war, state and society in wartime China, and the history of Chongqing."--
Nan Nü"The stories of how women struggled and suffered in order to survive and support their families in Chongqing during China's War of Resistance against Japan rewrites historical understanding of the roles played by ordinary people in wartime and highlights the voices of women which, until now, have been largely neglected in scholarship on the war."--
H-HistGeog"Danke Li's remarkable collection ... is a timely and welcome contribution to the fast-growing field of the study of wartime China."--
The China Quarterly"An excellent source through which to understand how warfare affected the lives of ordinary people in East Asia in the 1930s and 1940s. Highly recommended."--
Choice"This insightful study reveals the complex nature of the changes brought by war not only on gender relations, but also on Chinese society, culture, politics, and economics. A major contribution to the study of Chinese history."--Christina Kelley Gilmartin, author of
Engendering the Chinese Revolution: Radical Women, Communist Politics, and Mass Movements in the 1920sTable of ContentsAcknowledgments; Introduction: History, Women, and China's War of Resistance against Japan; Part I: The War and Gender's Social Roles; Prologue; Students; A Xiajiang Woman; A Doctor's Wife; A Girl of the ZZEB; A Teacher of the ZZEB; A Woman from a Rich and Powerful Family; Women from Poor Peasant Families; Part II: The War and Gender's Economic Impact; Prologue; Daughters; A Tailor's Wife; An Abandoned Housewife; A Minsheng Employee; A Yuhua Textile Factory Worker; A Woman of the Songji Experimental Zone; Part III: The War and Gender's Political Impact; Prologue; A Communist Woman Working for the XYCZFZW; A Student Revolutionary; A Jiuguohui Woman; An Underground CCP Member; Part IV: Women, Memory, and China's War of Resistance against Japan; Epilogue; Notes; References; Index