Half a Lifelong Romance

Half a Lifelong Romance
cover of 2014 English translation published by Penguin Classics
Author Eileen Chang
Original title 半生緣
Translator Karen Kingsbury
Country China
Language Chinese
Set in 20th-century Shanghai and Nanjing
Publication date
1948
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 半生緣
Simplified Chinese 半生缘
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin Bàn Shēng Yuán

Half a Lifelong Romance (半生緣) is a Chinese novel by Eileen Chang. It was initially serialized on a Shanghai newspaper Yi Bao (亦報) in 1948, under the title Eighteen Springs (十八春). The novel was published as a book in 1950. In 1966, Chang edited the book in the United States and republished it under the title Half a Lifelong Romance in Taiwan.

The novel was under the heavy influence of John P. Marquand's work, H. M. Pulham Esq. Chang transplanted and adapted the synopsis, character settings, important scenes, and dialogues from Marquand's work.

The novel was translated to English in 2014 by Karen S. Kingsbury.

Adaptations