“One cannot start any new study of Chinese literary modernity without first consulting, challenging, or at least reflecting his opinions.”
—David Der-wei Wang

A History of Modern Chinese Fiction was first published in 1961 and is a classic in the study of twentieth-century Chinese fiction. It traces the development of the form from the Literary Revolution to the early. C. T. Hsia delved into the works of important writers such as Lu Hsün, Pa Chin, Lao She, Eileen Chang and Ch’ien Chung-shu. In Hsia’s own words, “the literary historian’s first task is always the discovery and appraisal of excellence,” and in this belief he re-evaluated the important figures in modern Chinese literature such as Lu Hsün, and “discovered” those who had not been given proper attention, such as Eileen Chang.