Taiwan Today
Date: May 07, 2019

Taiwan novelist Wu Ming-yi is scheduled to appear at the PEN World Voices Festival May 6-12 in New York. (Courtesy of MOC)

Wu Ming-yi is set to feature in the PEN World Voices Festival May 6-12 in New York, marking the first time a Taiwan writer has been invited to share their insights and works at one of the largest international literary events in the U.S.

Participating with support from the Ministry of Culture, Wu is speaking at a forum co-sponsored by U.K. newspaper The Guardian and taking part in a book reading and salon. His talks will mainly focus on his acclaimed 2015 novel “The Stolen Bicycle,” the MOC said.

Longlisted for last year’s Man Booker International Prize, the work centers on a writer’s search for a bike belonging to his father who disappeared some 20 years before. Chance encounters with a colorful cast of characters interlaced with historical events offer readers a page-turning look into Taiwan’s culture and development, as well as military conflicts in Southeast Asia during World War II.

In the May 7 forum titled Meditation on War, Wu will join French novelist Laurent Gaude and Iraqi writer Sinan Antoon in discussing how individuals process memories of conflict and the role literature plays in illuminating humankind’s struggle against its darkest instincts.    [FULL  STORY]