Thoughts on the German Edition
Your magazine has a rich content that address
various aspect of contemporary China, just as its name implies.
This magazine doesn't shy away from problems and difficulties
that confront the nation, but it successfully elaborates on efforts
to solve them. Such information is useful and interesting to readers.
Articles that portray the ups and downs of real
Chinese life appeal to German readers. To give an example, ¡°My
Fortune Story¡± published in the August 2006 issue presents the
story of a young urbanite, her joys and worries, and it is lively
and rich in background information on China. The ¡°Pinggu Rest
Home¡± is another piece I enjoyed. This article provides information
on an area that is hardly known but of interest to readers. Germany
also faces the challenge of trying to take care of their elders
and disabled people, and could benefit greatly from knowledge
of what China is doing in this respect. The writing is convincing
and moving, particularly in its honest depiction of a disabled
man's grief and hope for a fruitful life.
Other articles I love include ¡°Youth Under Pressure,¡±
¡°Lenovo Wrestles Dell on the Mainland,¡± ¡°Environmental Protection
Part of Local Official Ambit¡± and ¡°Animating Chinese Animation.¡±
With regards to columns, my favorite includes
¡°Insight of China,¡± and ¡°Questions and Answers.¡± German people's
growing interest in China can be partly attributed to the increasing
media coverage of Chinese events in Germany. Everyday, various
German media deliver coverage on Chinese economy and society,
however this coverage is based on their own perspectives, and
concentrate on the issues of concern to foreign audience such
as environment and energy.
Generally all the first eight issues of 2006 are
great in their broad coverage and news values.
My suggestion for changes to the magazine is as
follows:
1. The ¡°questioner¡± and ¡°answerer¡± should be specified
in the ¡°Insight of China¡± and ¡°Questions and Answers¡± columns.
Are these individuals an editor or a government official? Or are
these material taken from government documents? An annotation
will make these articles more convincing.
2. The Book Review column should have more articles
on books by contemporary Chinese writers, such as Wolf Totem
.
3. It will be great if there were more articles
on Chinese history. As our knowledge of China's past promotes
one's understanding of it today.
Frau Dr. Buschmann
Germany
