Ha Jin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ha Jin 哈金
Born	(1956-02-21) February 21, 1956 (age 69) Liaoning, China
Pen name	Ha Jin
Occupation	Poet novelist teacher
Nationality	American
Education	Heilongjiang University (BA) Shandong University (MA) Brandeis University (PhD)
Genre	Poetry, short story, novel, essay
Subjects	China
Notable works	List The Boat Rocker Waiting In the Pond War Trash Ocean of Words The Bridegroom
Notable awards	List Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction (1996) Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award (1997) Guggenheim Fellowship (1999) National Book Award (1999) PEN/Faulkner Award (2000) Asian Fellowship (2000–2002) Townsend Prize for Fiction (2002) PEN/Faulkner Award (2005) American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2006) Dayton Literary Peace Prize, runner-up, Nanjing Requiem (2012)
Spouse	Lisha Bian
Signature

Jin Xuefei (simplified Chinese: 金雪飞; traditional Chinese: 金雪飛; pinyin: Jīn Xuěfēi) was born on February 21, 1956. He is a Chinese American poet and novelist. He writes under the pen name Ha Jin (Chinese: 哈金). The name Ha comes from his favorite city, Harbin, in China. His poetry is sometimes linked to the Misty Poetry movement.

Ha Jin's Early Life and Education

Ha Jin was born in Liaoning, China. His father was an officer in the military. When Jin was thirteen, he joined the People's Liberation Army. This was during a time called the Cultural Revolution in China.

At sixteen, Jin started teaching himself Chinese literature. He also studied high school subjects. He left the army when he was nineteen. Then, he went to Heilongjiang University. There, he earned a bachelor's degree in English studies. After that, he got a master's degree in Anglo-American literature from Shandong University.

Jin grew up during a time of big changes in China. He was studying at Brandeis University in the United States. This was when the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre happened in China. The government's strong actions made him decide to move to the United States for good. He also chose to write in English. He wanted to make sure his work could be shared freely. Later, he earned a Ph.D.

Becoming a Writer

His Novels and Short Stories

Many of Ha Jin's stories and novels are set in China. He often uses a made-up place called Muji City. He won the National Book Award for Fiction and the PEN/Faulkner Award. These were for his novel, Waiting, which came out in 1999.

He has also won three Pushcart Prizes for his fiction. Many of his short stories have been chosen for The Best American Short Stories books. His collection Under the Red Flag (1997) won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction. His book Ocean of Words (1996) received the PEN/Hemingway Award.

His novel War Trash (2004) is about the Korean War. This book earned him a second PEN/Faulkner Award. This means he is one of only a few authors to win this award more than once. War Trash was also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

Teaching and Other Work

Ha Jin teaches at Boston University in Boston, Massachusetts. He used to teach at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

In 2008, Jin was a special fellow for fiction in Berlin, Germany. In 2014, he became a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. This is a group that honors important artists.

An asteroid was named after him on July 28, 2021. Its name is (58495) Hajin.

Awards and Recognition

Ha Jin has received many awards for his writing:

• Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction (1996)
• PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel (1997)
• Guggenheim Fellowship (1999)
• National Book Award for Fiction (1999)
• PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction (2000)
• Asian Fellowship (2000–2002)
• Townsend Prize for Fiction (2002)
• PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction (2005)
• Fellow of American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2006)
• Dayton Literary Peace Prize, runner-up, Nanjing Requiem (2012)
• PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award for A Distant Center (2019)

His Books

See also

• Saboteur (short story) (2000)