AnnickPress

Ting-xing Ye was born in Shanghai and came to Toronto in August 1987 as a visiting scholar to York University. After living in Toronto for five years, she moved to Orillia.

One day she found herself sitting in front of a word processor, composing a story based on an old Chinese saying that her mother often used when young Ting-xing and her siblings came up with excuses to get out of completing their household chores. In Three Monks, No Water (1997), each monk believes that the other two should be responsible for fetching water, until a fire at the temple inspires co-operation and insight. Her autobiography, A Leaf in the Bitter Wind (Doubleday Canada), spans thirty-five years of her life as a female survivor during a tumultuous time in Chinese history.

Although Ting-xing enjoyed reading books as a child, she did not enjoy a simple childhood. She was born on June 28, 1952, the fourth child of a factory worker. She was orphaned at thirteen, and her high-school education was cut short by the Cultural Revolution. She majored in English language and literature at Beijing University, and yet, in thirty-five years of living in China, she never once took the initiative to write. Ting-xing realized at a very early age that, in China, the act of writing “black character on white paper” could prove dangerous. China’s totalitarian regime punished, suppressed, and occasionally executed people for their thoughts, spoken words, and writing.

Her latest book for Annick Press, The Chinese Thought of It: Amazing Inventions and Innovations (2009), chronicles the many ingenious inventions and innovations developed by the Chinese over the centuries, and which are still in use today.

Ting-xing lives in Orillia with her husband, author William Bell. Her plans are to continue to learn and grow by doing research and writing.

School, Library and Conference Presentations
Create Original Folktales from Real-life Experiences
Ting-xing’s stories and book talks are set before a backdrop of her incredible life: growing up in the Chinese culture and later immigrating to Canada.

Presentation format: Readings and discussion touch on the subjects of the writing process, growing up in the Chinese culture, and the immigrant experience.
Maximum: 80-100 Recommended age group: Grades 1-6 Length: one hour.