Zhang Lijia, author of the book Socialism is Great, says that despite her great respect for Ai Weiwei, she disagrees with some of the things he said about Beijing in his recent article for Newsweek. In the article, Ai had described the city as a "constant nightmare" in which he had "no favorite place" left anymore. more ›

Zhang Lijia, author of the book Socialism is Great, offers us a personal anecdote on the identity of her mixed-race kids. She writes of a recent trip to Bangladesh with her daughters:

Everywhere we went, people asked us which country we were from. At point, May, my older daughter, aged at 14 (but going on 18) replied without thinking: “We are from England.” I immediately contracted her: “I am from China and my daughters are half-Chinese.” Later I pulled May aside and asked: “You were born in China; you spent 10 out of 14 years in China and you are living in China. How does it qualify you as ‘English’?” May blinked her big round eyes. “Well, if I tell people I am Chinese, people wouldn’t believe me.” more ›

Xu Xi, author of Evanescent Isles talks to Zhang Lijia, journalist and author of the book Socialism is Great. In her book, Zhang tells her fascinating story of how she worked as a teenager in a Nanjing factory which produced missiles designed to reach North America, participated in the Tiananmen Square protests and eventually became a journalist. more ›

Jeremy Goldkorn of Danwei speaks to Zhang Lijia, journalist and author of the new book Socialism is Great. Zhang worked as a teenager in a Nanjing factory which produced missiles designed to reach North America, participated in the Tiananmen Square protests and subsequently became a journalist. more ›