Chinese literature, rich in history and variety, lacks a strong presence in the West due to cultural differences, language barriers and little exposure. Several programs have recently been initiated in cooperation with Chinese and U.S. universities in an effort to introduce Chinese classics and modern works to the Western world.

Readers browse Chinese books at the Los Angeles Book Fair, 2008. [Xinhua File Photo]

The Chinese Literature for Overseas Communication project was officially launched at Beijing Normal University (BNU) last Thursday and is dedicated to presenting a panoramic view of major developments in contemporary and modern Chinese literature to the outside world.

Jointly established by BNU and the University of Oklahoma (OU) in the U.S., the project is geared to translate and publish a total of 10 volumes of literary works into English that will be published by the Oklahoma University Press and made available to the public within the next three years.

The book series will see English translations of complete works of prose and collections of poetry by authors currently unknown outside of China, in addition to classic novels by well-known writers.

Tie Ning's Rose Gate, He Jiping's modern drama The Number One Restaurant under Heaven, together with works from Wang Meng, Yu Hua and Mo Yan, will be among the first batch of titles in the series.

An English academic journal, Chinese Literature Today (CLT), will also be published in cooperation with OU and BNU, mainly reporting on Chinese writers of today, their works and literary criticisms. The periodical is slated to meet readers this summer with Robert Con Davis-Undiano as chief editor. Davis-Undiano is a professor at OU and executive director of World Literature Today, a leading literary journal in the U.S..

CLT will funnel ideas from Chinese scholars, literary critics and writers to foreign readers so they can become more familiar with Chinese literature, not just from Western sinologists, but from Chinese writers as well. "World Literature Today has long recognized and honored China's vital contributions to literature and human culture. This partnership enables a unique and truly vital opportunity to promote Western readership of Chinese literature and enhance intercultural understanding and the exchange of ideas," Davis-Undiano said at the project's launch ceremony in Beijing.

CLT will also publish poems and excerpts of prose by Chinese writers. Davis-Undiano said that the first edition would showcase recent developments in Chinese literature and help readers gain a better and deeper understanding of the world's literary diversity and richness.

"Many of us have the understanding that a major barrier to the litera-ture of modern China being respected and appreciated internationally is the lack of translated works available outside of China," he added.