From self-published Internet pieces to short stories in literary journals to novels on store bookshelves, a new chapter of Chinese literature is being written. But rare is the chance to read pieces from contemporary literature’s best-known figures in decent English-language translation. Pathlight: New Chinese Writing is a quarterly journal of translated literature and poetry from one of the country’s oldest literary journals, and is a welcome peek into the landscape of modern Chinese lit. The first installment of the journal features a number of writers who won the prestigious Mao Dun Literary Prize. Not every piece in the journal is amazing, but some really stand out. We especially liked Jiang Yitan’s China Story, Di An’s Williams’ Tomb, and Qi Ge’s The Sugarblower. Not only is Pathlight a look at contemporary Chinese fiction, it’s also an introduction to the scene’s established and up-and-coming English language translators. It’s not much of a stretch to say that an author is only as good as his translator, and here readers can compare the best at work today.

Pathlight: New Chinese Writing, find it at The Bookworm, or paper-republic.org