Cao Wenxuan
Biography
Cao Wenxuan (1954) was born in Yancheng, Jiangsu, and graduated from Peking University. He is best known for his children’s literature and in 2016 he became the first Chinese author to win the Hans Christian Andersen Award for children’s writing. The International Board on Books for Young People’s jury, announcing the award, said Cao “writes beautifully about the complex lives of children facing great challenges. He is a deeply committed writer, whose own difficult childhood has been deeply influential on his writing in which there are no easy answers.” His best-selling books, which have been translated all over the world, include The Goat Never Eats the Grass in Heaven, Bronze Sunflower, Feather and The Wooden Fish. He is currently vice chairman of the Beijing Writers Association, director of the Contemporary Literature Teaching and Research Association and committee member of the China Children’s Literature Writers Association.