The Wall Dancers: Searching for Freedom and Connection on the Chinese Internet
Language: English
Published by Alfred A. Knopf, 2026
- Hardcover
- Used
Seller: World of Books Inc, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.World of Books Inc
AbeBooks seller since March 23, 2026
Condition: Used - Good
£ 8.98
Quantity: 3 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
An eye-opening exploration of the Chinese internet that reveals the intricate dance between freedom and control in contemporary China "The Wall Dancers is history told in a gripping, novelistic style. It is at once a crash course in contemporary Chinese politics and culture and an epic story about human drive, desperation, and ingenuity against inordinate odds. Yi-Ling Liu has written a masterwork." --Jonathan Blitzer, New York Times bestselling author of Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here In the late 1990s, as the world was waking up to the power and emancipatory promise of the internet, Chinese authorities began constructing a system of online surveillance and censorship now known as the Great Firewall. But far from being a barren landscape, the digital world that sprouted up behind the firewall brimmed with new subcultures and tech innovations, offering many Chinese citizens previously unimaginable connection and opportunity. Today, as the country's leadership intensifies its control of public discourse and Western headlines reduce the Chinese public to a faceless monolith, journalist Yi-Ling Liu presents an intimate portrait of China's online ecosystem--and a crucial lens into the on-the-ground reality of life there. Tracing the last three decades of the Chinese internet's evolution--from its lexicon to its memes to the precise nature of its censorship--she equips readers with a critical tool to assess the past, present, and future of a global power. Drawing on years of firsthand reporting, The Wall Dancers weaves together the stories of individuals navigating China's transformation into both the world's largest online user base and one of its most populous authoritarian states. As these entrepreneurs, activists, artists, and dreamers experience the internet's power as a tool for both control and liberation, they grapple with universal questions of success and authenticity, love and solidarity, faith and resilience. The Wall Dancers is at once an unforgettable work of human storytelling and a vital exploration of what it means to live with dignity and hope within the technological systems that now shape all our lives.…
Seller Inventory # CIN0593491858G
- Title
- The Wall Dancers: Searching for Freedom and Connection on the Chinese Internet
- Author
- Yi-Ling Liu
- Publisher
- Alfred A. Knopf
- Publication year
- 2026
- Condition
- Good
- Binding
- Hardback
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0593491858
- ISBN 13
- 9780593491850
In the late 1990s, as the world was waking up to the power of the internet, Chinese authorities began constructing a system of online surveillance and censorship that became known as the Great Firewall. But far from being a barren landscape, the online world that sprouted up behind the firewall evolved into a space where Chinese citizens could find previously unimaginable connection and opportunity, teeming with new subcultures and tech innovations.
Today, as the country's leadership has intensified its control of public discourse and western headlines reduce the Chinese public to a faceless monolith, journalist Yi-Ling Liu offers an intimate portrait of China's online ecosystem-and a crucial lens into the on-the-ground reality of life there. In tracing the evolution of the Chinese internet--from its lexicon to its memes to the precise nature of its censorship--she equips readers with a critical tool to assess the past, present, and future of a global power.
The Wall Dancers spans the last three decades in China, a period that encapsulates the country's transformation into both the world's largest online userbase and one of its most populous authoritarian states--from 1995, when ordinary Chinese people first logged onto the internet, swept up by its emancipatory promise, to the present day, as China closes off its virtual borders. Drawing on years of firsthand reporting, Liu weaves together the stories of individual citizens navigating this transformation: the entrepreneurs, activists, artists, and dreamers striving for freedom and connection within the state's shifting boundaries. As Liu's subjects experience the internet's power as a tool of both control and liberation, they grapple with universal questions of success and authenticity, love and solidarity, faith and resilience.
The Wall Dancers is at once an unforgettable work of human storytelling and a vital exploration of what it means to live with dignity and hope within the technological systems that now shape all of our lives.
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World of Books Inc
Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since March 23, 2026
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