Yu Hua (余华) is a Chinese author, born on April 3, 1960 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. He worked as a dentist for five years and later turned to fiction in 1983 because he didn’t like “looking into people?s mouths the whole day.” Writing allowed him to be more creative and flexible. He grew up during the Cultural Revolution and many of his stories and novels are marked by this experience. Some[who?] have called his early work brutal. Yu Hua has written four novels, six collections of stories, and three collections of essays. His most important novels are Chronicle of a Blood Merchant and To Live. The latter novel was adapted for film by Zhang Yimou. Because the film was banned in China, it instantly made the novel a bestseller and Yu Hua a worldwide celebrity. His novels have been translated into English, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Spanish, Swedish, Japanese, Korean and Malayalam.
Short Stories
- Leaving Home at Eighteen (十八岁出门远行, Shíbā Suì Chūmén Yuǎnxíng)
- The Past and the Punishments: Eight Stories
- World Like Mist: Eight Stories (Shi shi ru yan)
Novels
- To Live (1992) (活着, Huózhe)
- Chronicle of a Blood Merchant (许三观卖血记, Xǔ Sānguān Mài Xuè Jì) (1995)
- Cries in the Drizzle (在细雨中呼喊, Zaixiyuzhong Huhan) (2003)
- Brothers (兄弟, Xiōng Dì) (2005)