Helpful Score: 2
Shen Fus Six Records of a Floating Life is more than an autobiography; it is a life composed from poetry and flower petals. Somewhere between the beauty of the words is also found a glimpse into a moment in time that few Westerners understand, much less know of. It is inside these words that can be discovered new concepts and previously unknown ideals. Concepts foreign to Western society take on stiff definitions based on incomplete knowledge and broad stereotypes. In Six Records of a Floating Life, Shen Fu presents to the reader some alternate outcomes and ideas of what may be preconceived Western notions about certain truths in Qing Dynasty China.
Helpful Score: 1
This translation faithfully renders the original book's smooth and flowing style; at any rate it reflects the beauty carried in the original Chinese language (I also read the Chinese version). I highly recommend this book to anyone who is in interested in China,its people and its history.
