Collection of Exquisite One Hundred-Character Masterpieces Through the Ages

Author: Gu Zijing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-09-01
Features: This book selects four hundred ancient Chinese short prose pieces. These works are exquisite treasures from the Warring States period to the late Qing Dynasty. All the selected essays are within two hundred words, with none being excerpts from longer works, hence the title "Bai Zi" (meaning "one hundred words"). Each piece showcases the author's independent and perfect conception. With different perspectives, varied structures, diverse sources, and distinct writing styles, the overall collection presents a colorful aesthetic. We believe these essays are beneficial for cultivating temperament, enhancing knowledge, entertaining emotions, and inspiring beauty. These works, with their novel and lively ideas and exquisite writing, can all be called "beautiful prose." The book is titled "Bai Zi Mei Wen Cui Zhen" (A Collection of Beautiful Prose from Different Dynasties), stemming from this belief.
After each selected work, there are annotations and analyses. We strive to make the annotations simple and clear, enabling readers to accurately understand the original text. The analyses are as close as possible to the main themes of the original works, with each analysis limited to five hundred words, along with the author's insights. The analyses are written in vivid and engaging language, with diverse styles, aiming to leave readers with a sense of "seeing eye to eye," a joy of "having their minds opened," or even sparking questions and debates. In summary, if the ancient short prose and our annotations and analyses are like small pebbles that can create ripples in readers' hearts, that would be our greatest satisfaction.