THOMAS PODVIN’S FREELANCE WORK
Freelance writer - translator - Editor

In 2001, French journalist Pierre Haski visited a remote village in Xihaigu in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, one of the poorest areas in China's northwest. In Xihaigu water is precious; monthly income averages just RMB 400, and going to school is a haphazard proposition at best. However, Haski discovered just how high a premium is placed on education after a local woman, forced to remove her daughter from school, gave him the girl's diaries. Haski eventually published the diaries in the newspaper Libération, along with his notes and a series of black and white photos. The piece, entitled I Want to Go to School, touched a great number of readers and was eventually expanded into book form. Subsequently, a film version was made for French television. Thanks to the publicity, donations poured in and this tale has a happy ending – Ma Yan has gone back to school. This book may not win the Nobel Prize in Literature, but it inspires respect and admiration.
Virago Press

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
December 2005 issue

For newcomers to Beijing, the Insider's Guide will provide a deeper appreciation of its society and culture. For long term expatriates, who may feel that a lifetime isn't enough to understand the city, well, this book might just change their minds. This second edition benefits from invaluable reader feedback and has expanded to 700 pages covering all the usual subjects – housing, food, art, nightlife, etc. – and a number of the not-so-usual: avant-garde artists, filmmaking, eunuchs, and golf. Like its predecessor, it includes a number (120) of delightful and provocative essays on everything Beijing: from "cab complexity" to "pet sustenance", which raises this publication far above the standard guidebook fare. While it certainly informs, the Insider's Guide is more a socio-historical-cultural compendium assembled by 30 highly-individual contributors, both expats and locals. Smart reading – even for those so-called China hands who think they know it all.
China Intercontinental Press

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
December 2005 issue