夏笳的《中国百科全书》是一系列相互关联又独立成篇的作品。每篇小说都讲述了一个不同的故事,同一位女性叙事者使得各个故事产生了似有若无的联系。当然,真正将此系列故事贯穿起来的,是一个共通的主题:智慧生命个体间的交流。每个故事都从不同的侧面探查了这个主题,勾画出语言的障碍,生命的孤独,以及对交流的无奈和渴望。正如作者在第一篇小说的后记中提到的,刘 Harcourt’s “China Encyclopedia” is a series of interrelated and independent works. Each novel tells a different story, with the same female narrator makes the story has a seemingly no connection. Of course, the real story of this series is run through, is a common theme: the exchange of wisdom between individuals. Each story explores the subject from a different perspective, delineating the language barriers, the loneliness of life, and the frustration and desire for communication. As the author mentioned in the postscript of the first novel, Liu