Strange Stories From a Chinese Studio (selections from Volume 1)


Read by LibriVox Volunteers

(4.8 stars; 11 reviews)

"Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio" or "Strange Tales of Liaozhai") is a collection of nearly five hundred mostly supernatural tales written by Pu Songling during the early Qing Dynasty. It was written in Classical Chinese rather than Vernacular Chinese. Pu is believed to have completed the majority of the tales sometime in 1679, though he could have added entries as late as 1707. He borrows from a folk tradition of oral storytelling to put to paper a series of captivating, colorful stories, where the boundary between reality and the odd or fantastic is blurred. The cast of characters includes vixen spirits, ghosts, scholars, court officials, Taoist exorcists and beasts. Moral purposes are often inverted between humans and the supposedly degenerate ghosts or spirits, resulting in a satirical edge to some of the stories. Ghosts and spirits are often bold and trustworthy, while humans are on the other hand weak, indecisive and easily manipulated, reflecting the author's own disillusionment with his society. (Summary from Wikipedia) (5 hr 28 min)

Chapters

Introduction 31:19 Read by Jc Guan
Examination for the Post of Guardian Angel 7:37 Read by David Barnes
The Talking Pupils 7:48 Read by Ashwin Jain
The Painted Wall 9:15 Read by Ashwin Jain
Planting a Pear-Tree 7:07 Read by Ashwin Jain
The Taoist Priest of Lao-Shan 9:29 Read by Alan Davis Drake (1945-2010)
The Buddhist Priest of Ch'angch'ing 8:12 Read by Alan Davis Drake (1945-2010)
The Marriage of the Fox’s Daughter 12:33 Read by Jennie Hughes
Miss Chiao-No 23:46 Read by Jennie Hughes
Magical Arts 12:44 Read by David Barnes
Joining the Immortals 26:58 Read by David Barnes
The Fighting Quails 16:37 Read by TriciaG
The Painted Skin 16:37 Read by Vivian Chan
The Trader’s Son 10:40 Read by Scott Carpenter
Judge Lu 25:34 Read by Scott Carpenter
Miss Ying-Ning, or the Laughing Girl 30:06 Read by TriciaG
The Magic Sword 25:00 Read by Vivian Chan
The Shui-Mang Plant 11:35 Read by TriciaG
Little Chu 20:06 Read by HC
Miss Quarta Hu 10:06 Read by TriciaG
Mr. Chu, the Considerate Husband 4:55 Read by Vivian Chan

Reviews

Especially enjoyed Ying-Ning, Laughing Girl, an enchanting tale.


(5 stars)