Alumna publishes Chinese-language book on U. alumni

Danqi Shen ’11 has published a collection of stories highlighting the lives of different alumni in her first book, "Zi You De Lao Hu," translated as “Free Tigers.” The book was released in China in April and is only available in Mandarin. Shen, a Shanghai resident, said she was inspired to write the book in her junior year at the University when she took an East Asian Studies course and learned about the University's first Chinese students.

After that, Shen began researching alumni on her own and conducting interviews with them to learn about their personal stories. She originally published her writings as blog posts, which attracted publishers.

“[The publication process] is quite natural. People approached me almost every day asking whether I wanted to get published,” Shen explained.

Shen was an operations research and financial engineering concentrator and currently studies at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Paula Chow, co-founder of the Davis International Center, was interviewed for the book. Chow knew Shen when she was a student, and Shen visited Chow in her home during the summer of 2012 to conduct a personal interview. Chow said Shen was very thorough in her research because she looked not only at the individuals she wrote about but also their background.

“She wanted to write about the first ones, about the ones who have broken the ground,” Chow explained.

Christina Gelsone ’96, a freelance clown and street performer, was also interviewed for the book.

Gelsone explained that Shen traveled to Washington, D.C., to see her perform and conducted the interview backstage after the show. Gelsone did not know Shen before she was contacted for an interview.

“I need a lot of publicity for my job. I have a public job,” Gelsone explained. “It’s not uncommon for someone to call me and ask for an interview.”

Gelsone said the nature of the book makes it more attractive to a Chinese readership.

“I don’t know how many people in the United States would be like, 'Oh I would love to read a book about Princeton graduates,' whereas in China there is definitely a bigger audience,” Gelsone said.

Peter Hessler ’92, an American writer and journalist who published three books about China, was also interviewed for the book and, like Gelsone, said there is a larger demand for such books in China. His book "River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze," a memoir about his time spent near the Yangtze River as a Peace Corps volunteer, has sold more copies in China in a span of three years than in its 13 years in the United States.

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However, Shen is not satisfied with the way her book has been received and thinks that it could have been handled better by the publisher.

“They are no longer trying to make classic books, instead they are just trying to, you know, cash out quickly,” Shen said, referring to publishing houses.

Shen said the portion of her book about Zhou En Bai, the first premier of the People’s Republic of China, has been censored by her publishing house.

“Part of most books is censored in China, so it’s OK,” Shen said.

Stella Ma ’16, who read the book this summer, said she felt close to the book because the story intersects with her own life.

“She wrote about OA trips, things like East Asian Library and [Princeton Chinese Theater], like all the things I was involved with. So it felt really good to read the book,” Ma explained. Ma is co-president of PCT.

Neither Gelsone nor Hessler has read the book because it is only available in Chinese. Shen said she has no intention of translating the book into English.

“I don’t care about English readers,” Shen explained. “I don’t have my natural attachment to that place.”

Dinghao Zhang, an editor of The Culture of Shanghai, a Chinese magazine in which Shen has published articles, said he thought the book was well-written.

“Personally, it made me know Princeton better. Before I only knew Einstein and a few other people who went to Princeton, but now I know that Princeton is a more well-rounded research university than I originally thought,” Zhang said in Mandarin Chinese.

Correction: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this article incorrectly referred to Harvard's Kennedy School. The Kennedy School is Harvard's Government School. The 'Prince' regrets the error.