No further books followed, although Hughart had planned a series of seven novels. It was followed in 1988 by The Story of the Stone and in 1990 by Eight Skilled Gentlemen. The first book Bridge of Birds was published in 1984, the title derived from " The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl" myth.
The series blends Chinese mythology-authentic and imagined, from several eras-with detective fiction and a gentle, ironic humour. The Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox is a series of three books about Li Kao, an ancient sage and scholar with "a slight flaw in his character", and his client, later assistant, the immensely strong peasant Number Ten Ox, who narrates the story.
The Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox Romance of the Three Kingdoms and The Arabian Nights are two major works he also states as affecting his own writing. Hughart cites Alexandre Dumas, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Mark Twain as major influences in his work. After his last published novel, Hughart reportedly stopped writing. He intended to write seven novels about the adventures of Li Kao and Number Ten Ox, but his writing career was cut short due to issues with his publishers. įrom 1965 to 1970 Hughart was the manager of the Lenox Hill Book Shop in New York City.īarry Hughart's writing career started with his novel Bridge of Birds, published in 1984, which won the 1985 World Fantasy Award for best novel and also won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award in 1986, followed by The Story of the Stone in 1988 and Eight Skilled Gentlemen in 1990. His connection to China continued after his military service, as he worked with TechTop, a military surplus company that was based in Asia, from 1960 to 1965. ĭuring Hughart's military service he began to develop his lifelong interest in China that led him to plan a series set in "an Ancient China that never was".
Upon his graduation from Columbia, Hughart joined the United States Air Force and served from 1956 to 1960 where he was involved in laying mines in the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Following his release he attended Columbia University, where he obtained a bachelor's degree in 1956. After graduating from high school, he had undiagnosed depression, which was classified at the time as schizophrenia, and was treated in the Kings County Psychiatric Ward.
Hughart was educated at Phillips Academy (Andover). His mother, Veronica Hughart, was an architect. His father, John Harding Page, served as a naval officer. Hughart was born in Peoria, Illinois on March 13, 1934. Barry Hughart (Ma– August 1, 2019) was an American author of fantasy novels.
0 kommentar(er)
