{"product_id":"the-wall-dancers-searching-for-freedom-and-connection-on-the-chinese-internet-hardcover","title":"The Wall Dancers: Searching for Freedom and Connection on the Chinese Internet - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eYi-Ling Liu\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn eye-opening exploration of the Chinese internet that reveals the intricate dance between freedom and control in contemporary China \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eThe Wall Dancers\u003c\/i\u003e is history told in a gripping, novelistic style. It is at once a crash course in contemporary Chinese politics and culture and an epic story about human drive, desperation, and ingenuity against inordinate odds. Yi-Ling Liu has written a masterwork.\"\u003cbr\u003e--Jonathan Blitzer, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author of \u003ci\u003eEveryone Who Is Gone Is Here\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn the late 1990s, as the world was waking up to the power and emancipatory promise of the internet, Chinese authorities began constructing a system of online surveillance and censorship now known as the Great Firewall. But far from being a barren landscape, the digital world that sprouted up behind the firewall brimmed with new subcultures and tech innovations, offering many Chinese citizens previously unimaginable connection and opportunity. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eToday, as the country's leadership intensifies its control of public discourse and Western headlines reduce the Chinese public to a faceless monolith, journalist Yi-Ling Liu presents an intimate portrait of China's online ecosystem--and a crucial lens into the on-the-ground reality of life there. Tracing the last three decades of the Chinese internet's evolution--from its lexicon to its memes to the precise nature of its censorship--she equips readers with a critical tool to assess the past, present, and future of a global power. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eDrawing on years of firsthand reporting, \u003ci\u003eThe Wall Dancers\u003c\/i\u003e weaves together the stories of individuals navigating China's transformation into both the world's largest online user base and one of its most populous authoritarian states. As these entrepreneurs, activists, artists, and dreamers experience the internet's power as a tool for both control and liberation, they grapple with universal questions of success and authenticity, love and solidarity, faith and resilience. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Wall Dancers\u003c\/i\u003e is at once an unforgettable work of human storytelling and a vital exploration of what it means to live with dignity and hope within the technological systems that now shape all our lives.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eYI-LING LIU's work has been published in \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Harper's Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e, WIRED, and \u003ci\u003eThe New York Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e. She has been a New America Fellow, a recipient of the Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award, and an Overseas Press Club Foundation Scholar. Born and raised in Hong Kong, and a graduate of Yale University, she now lives in London.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 336\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.4 x 9.4 x 6.2 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e February 03, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51978277716269,"sku":"9780593491850","price":28.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0938\/3185\/6429\/files\/vFnbGUb74q9780593491850.webp?v=1775801412","url":"https:\/\/ishookbooks.com\/products\/the-wall-dancers-searching-for-freedom-and-connection-on-the-chinese-internet-hardcover","provider":"iShook Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}