' When fox is a thousand, it can speak to Heaven and will never die'

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	• When Fox Is a Thousand Larissa Lai Press Gang Publishers, 1995 - 236 pages average customer review:based on 4 reviews view larger image
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A well-written journey into other dimensions and Vancouver

This must one of the most remarkable and readable magical-realism books ever written in English. In her part-mystery, part-historical novel, part- fantasy, Ms Lai manages to lead us in and out of different dimensions without the slightest degree of confusion. I was never a fan of this genre but have become entranced with this skilfully and delightfully-written work, which uses fantasy to teach us to look at ethno-cultural identity and belonging in a new way. Chapeaux off to Press Gang for a fine production job, with a delightful icon-in-the-margin trick to save the innocent reader from confusion.

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' When fox is a thousand, it can speak to Heaven and will never die'

Written in three narrative voices, moving between China and Vancouver and between centuries, this is a wonderful tale. While the fox moves towards a thousand, and immortality, we also journey with a ninth-century female Taoist poet, and Artemis, a young Asian-American woman living in contemporary Vancouver.

This novel combines aspects of Chinese mythology, medieval China, and life in modern-day Vancouver to revise the myth of the Fox (a figure who can inhibit women's bodies in order to cause mischief) and to explore some of the identity and dislocation issues experienced by migrants. Ms Lai's imagination results in a tale that continues to haunt long after the story is told.

'When a fox is fifty, it can take the form of a woman. When it is one hundred, it can take the form of a beautiful girl. When it is a thousand, it can speak to Heaven and will never die. '

Recommended to both lovers of fantasy as well as to those who enjoy well-crafted fiction more generally.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

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Fascinating style, perfectly written!

I was almost put off by the three different voices narrating this book, but it was easy to read from the first page. The characters are so interesting, you will want to read it all at once. It is very woman-focused and addresses issues of sexuality and ethic identity in a low-key way that does not take away from the story.

beautiful, engrossing, got to love the fox.

This book is the epitome of excellence, the characters are intriguing, especially the fox. The use of 3 voices is just phenomenal. Read this book.

When Fox is a Thousand is a lyrical, magical novel, rich with poetry and folklore and elements of the fairytale. Larissa Lai interweaves three narrative voices and their attendant cultures: an elusive fox growing toward wisdom and her 1000 birthday, the ninth-century Taoist poet/nun Yu Hsuan-Chi (a real person executed in China for murder), and the oddly named Artemis, a young Asian-American woman living in contemporary Vancouver.

With beautiful and enchanting prose, and a sure narrative hand, Lai combines Chinese mythology, the sexual politics of medieval China, and modern-day Vancouver to masterfully revise the myth of the Fox (a figure who can inhibit women's bodies in order to cause mischief). Her potent imagination and considerable verbal skill result in a tale that continues to haunt long after the story is told.

First published to wide acclaim in 1995 and out of print since 2001, this new edition of When Fox is a Thousand, published by Arsenal Pulp Press for the first time, features a new foreword by the author.

Praise for When Fox is a Thousand:

"A sure-footed writer and teller of tales, Lai takes the reader on a magnificent journey through layers of time, myth, and imagery."-Susan Crean

"A particularly acute pleasure."-The Advocate

Larissa Lai was born in La Jolla, California and lives in Calgary where she is completing a Ph.D. in English at the University of Calgary. She was awarded an Astraea Foundation Emerging Writers Award in 1995. She is also the author of the novel Salt Fish Girl (2002).

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