Rong Jiang

Jiang Rong (pseudonym of Lu Jiamin) was born in Beijing in 1946 and is a university professor of political and economic sciences in Beijing. Until recently, only a few people knew the true identity of the author, as the Chinese authorities would never allow a novel to be published under his real name due to his political beliefs. The author was imprisoned for two years because of his role in the Tiananmen Square student uprising, and even today, he is prohibited from teaching at the university. He lives in Beijing with his wife, the famous writer and feminist Zhang Kangkang. "Wolf Totem" is his first book. It is based on the experiences he had while volunteering in the barren steppes of Inner Mongolia during the Cultural Revolution from 1967 to 1978, where he came to know and learn firsthand about the lives of nomads and wolves. The book took thirty years of study and collection and six years of writing to complete. It was honored with the Man Asia Booker Prize and has sold over 20 million copies (both official and pirated) in China. Its rights have been sold in 24 countries.