Born in Shandong in 1986, Shen Yang belongs to the millions of “invisible children” who violated the One-Child Policy and were forced to live in the shadows of the Chinese society. Her book More Than One Child: Memoir of an Illegal Daughter, which was translated by Nicky Harman and published by Balestier Press in 2021, provides a vivid account of the family planning era in China, as she writes down her journey towards overcoming the limits of her upbringing and forging her own identity amidst the difficulties of her childhood.

The author Shen Yang will visit Finland in connection with the Finnish publication of his book More Than One Child (Into 2023). The Finland-China Society organizes two events in cooperation with the universities of Turku and Helsinki, where the author Shen Yang and the translator Rauno Sainio discuss the book and its translation work from China into Finnish.

On December 1st 2021, the Leeds Centre for New Chinese Writing invited Shen Yang and Nicky Harman to discuss about “More Than One Child”. The talk will cover the background of the book, the experiences of ‘excess children’ in China during the years of the One-Child Policy, and the process and challenges of translation.

Balestier Press dedicates their August Online Book Club to More Than One Child. The event features Nicky Harman, Shen Yang and special guest Xinran. Sign up and get a chance to receive the 1st chapter of More Than One Child.