A Novel About Tiananmen Wins Japan Book Prize

After Ma Jian's Beijing Coma: A Novel, another novel about Tiananmen massacre and its aftermath was published in Japan and won a prestigious Japanese literary award. The book was written by a 44-year-old Yang Yi, who had moved to Japan at age 22. According to Reuters report,

The novel, staged in China and Japan, is about the fate of two Chinese college students who participated in the demonstrations at Beijing's Tiananmen Square nearly 20 years ago, which ended in a bloody army crackdown.

In the novel, one of the students remains in China, while the other moves to Japan and heads a pro-democracy campaign. He protests against China's plan to host the Olympic Games, only to see enthusiasm wane among fellow Chinese expats in Japan.