曹文轩（Cao Wenxuan），is a renowned contemporary Chinese writer and winner ofthe Hans Christian Andersen Award. This book includes II ofhis stories oflove， death， friendship， and family life. As a popular children's fiction writer， Cao has published over 50 books and has reached and touched millions ofreaders all over the world.
　　Cao Wenxuan was born in Yancheng， Jiangsu Province， in 1954. He is now a professor at Peking University. As a renowned writer of contemporary Chinese literature， he is a member of the National Committee of China Writers Association. His literary works have won many domestic and international prizes，including the China National Book Award and Hans Christian Andersen Award.

　　Stories selected in this book depict rurallife in China's northern Jiangsu Province， primarly from the children's perspective. Blending happiness and melancholy， they follow Cao's style oftouching narration.

　　《曹文轩小说精选集（英）》：
　　Only cating for themselves， everyone hurried for their lives， shouting in distress. Those who could swim naturally didn't care. Those who could only swim a little choked on a few mouthfuls of water， but made it to shore， showing the whites of their eyes and vomiting up water with their necks outsttetched. Neither of Ah Chu's parents knew how to swim， and were only heard uttering a few shouts before they sank.
　　People who had made it onto the bank suddenly realized they should try to save the people in the river. But it was so dark that they became timid. Several people who went back into the water only shouted and fumbled wildly on the river's surface， making an empty show of strength thtough exaggetated gestures. No one dared dive into the depths of the river. When the daring rescue people artived， it was too late.
　　A few days after the accident， by the riverside at the edge of the village， Da Gou's father said Ah Chu's father had clung to his arm when the boat capsized and that both of them sank to the rivet bottom. Da Gou's father pinched and tweaked him， but Ah Chu's father would not let go. Da Gou's father thought he was going to die. After swallowing a mouthful of mud at the bottom of the river， Da Gou's father had a clever idea to pull out the flash Light in this pocket and thrust it into the hand of Ah Chu's father! It worked! Being choked senseless， Ah Chu's father thought he had seized something that could save his life， so he loosened his grip on Da Gou's father to grab the flashlight. Da Gou's father let go of the flashlight， freed himself from Ah Chu's father， got out of the water， and climbed onto the shore.
　　As he told the story， the face of Da Gou's father was very lively and shiny： His wisdom seemed much superior to that of others. Those who listened to him exclaimed： "What danger!" They very much admired the cleverness and craftiness of Da Gou's father.
　　"Ifit were me， I would already be in the nether world."
　　"Then， you couldn't hold your fat wife and sleep with her."
　　Two women giggled.
　　In the end， Da Gou's father couldn't help but feel a little sorry， saying： "That was the flashlight I'd just bought."
　　Ah Chu， in the crowd， silently listened the whole time before squatting on the ground， He continued to squat as the crowd dispersed. Once unable to squat any longer， he sat， weak and limp， on the ground， staring at the rivet and watching a piece of dead wood， a dead chicken， and a huge chrysanthernum float away. He watched until dark.
　　After his grand mother passed away three years later， Ah Chu lived alone. Sometimes， he went to his maternal grandmother's house for meals and， other times， he went door to door in the village asking for food. He stubbornly believed all the villagers owed him. He had such poor table manners that he seemed like a ravenous wild wolf cub， swallowing without chewing， with half the food inside， and half outside， his bowl. He would leave food scattered all over the table and ground. He always hung around outside with rice grains pasted to the tip of his nose.
　　……

The Nets
Weather Loaches
Ah Chu
A Live Bait
The Sweet Orange Tree
Blue Flower
Bai Que （I）
Bai Que （II）
Xi Ma
The Dyehouse Owner's Son （I）
The Dyehouse Owner's Son （II）
The Eleventh Strip of Red Cloth
Fields So Blue