Chow Yiu-Fai_What If We Feared Nothing_Taiwan Limited Edition

*** This product ships to Taiwan only Author: Chow Yiu-Fai Publisher: Bright Light Culture Size: 150mm x 210mm Pages: 224 ISBN: 978-626-97879-1-3 Publication Date: February 2024 [Synopsis] Chow Yiu-Fai, one of Hong Kong's top three lyricists, imbues this work with his imagination and keen observation. Starting with the letters A to Z, he lists 128 peculiar phobias found in everyday life. Through various life stories, perhaps we can learn to accept each other's differences and empathize with their fears. Or perhaps, by struggling to understand, we may reconsider whether our own fears are equally illogical and limiting our lives. As the author once said at a seminar: "The inspiration for 'going to hell' came from a philosopher I recently read who discussed disasters and how we can face them. He proposed a paradoxical idea: let's consider the disaster as inevitable, and then, from the perspective of this inevitable disaster, think about what we would do. Simply put, his idea is, how can we avoid a disaster? By assuming it will inevitably happen." (Excerpt from the Foreword) Li Chako-Hsiung (Writer, Golden Melody Award for Best Lyricist) The 20 pieces in "What If We Feared Nothing" have a strong "novelistic" flavor. The "people around me" or "friends of friends" in the book are all "fellow patients" of phobias. True becomes false, and false becomes true, essentially portraying characters in a minimalist style that could appear in the short stories of Kafka or Borges, each with its own allegorical meaning. Even more intriguing is the narrator's "I," who also plays a role, subtly weaving through the narrative. In the opening piece, "A: Countless Spiders, Where to Find Someone," the "I" acts like a detached host, merely introducing the "patients" who take turns. By the end, in "Y/Z: External/Human-Beast," the "I" himself needs to see a therapist. This confession behind a mask reveals that "I" am also one of the "patients," one of the myriad beings. Man Kit-Wah (Chair Professor, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Hong Kong Metropolitan University) He is right; we fear everything, and the number of our fears far exceeds the 26 categories from A to Z. Chow Yiu-Fai also states that everything we fear will inevitably happen just as we dread it. He doesn't even discuss how we can reduce our fears, including the innocence, imagination, and hope we have already lost... He is not mocking, but indirectly quoting Socrates: we fear because we are ignorant. The most terrifying thing in the world is not loss, but our failure to grasp happiness. Juno Mak (Hong Kong Singer, Actor, Director, Screenwriter, Producer) Does a heap of knowledge teach us to collect a heap of fears? Fear is life's strongest and most intangible obstacle. Fear sweating, so it's best not to move. Fear shedding tears, so it's best not to love. I fear many things, but I fear even more that I am putting the cart before the horse, fearing things in the wrong order... Perhaps I fear the word "fear" even more. (Excerpt from the Author's Preface) I can continue writing, and we can also think about the things we fear, and then consider, if these things were inevitable, what would you do? I hope we don't just think, but enter that emotional state. If it really happened! If it really happened, what would we do, or what should we do? I don't know. Even if I knew, I shouldn't say, because I believe everyone must deal with their own fears. What you fear will inevitably happen! When we can face our fears, we can begin to live bravely! [Author's Biography] Chow Yiu-Fai graduated from the University of Hong Kong with a degree in English Language and Comparative Literature, after which he engaged in various media work. He published his first lyric in 1989 and has since written lyrics and other literary works, with over a thousand lyrics and several collections of essays published. His lyrics include "Forget He Is She," "Heavenly Questions," "Meteor," "Wander," "Love Love Love," "Model," "Tiny," "Silver Hair White," "I Want to Give the World the Longest Wet Kiss," and "Half." Chow Yiu-Fai's writing is ornate and unique, traversing between mainstream and non-mainstream spheres, and has earned him numerous awards for his lyrics and other literary achievements. He moved from Hong Kong to the Netherlands in 1992. In 2011, he received his doctorate from the University of Amsterdam's Graduate School of Media, and returned to Hong Kong to join Hong Kong Baptist University, where he is currently a professor in the Department of Humanities and Creative Writing. In recent years, he has also been involved in stage and visual arts creation. In 2023, Chow Yiu-Fai won the Best Lyricist award at the 34th Golden Melody Awards for "Human, Oh Human," marking the first time a Cantonese song received this accolade.