"Doctor Zhang and Doctor Wang" Author: Yi Xianfeng/Yang Ying Wenhui Publishing House

The struggle between the two original families spanning thirty years mobilized an energy comparable to that of a war.

Li Haipeng wrote the preface, Chen Jiaying, Liang Wendao, Luo Xin, Yan Fei, and Ban Yu sincerely recommended

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☆ The founders of "Curiosity Daily" and "Little Bird Literature", well-known media people Yi Xianfeng and Yang Ying published their first book

☆ The social class leap of two workers' children reflects the great changes in Chinese society over the past 30 years

☆ A world from yesterday, but you are not unfamiliar with it: the fate of two families, a city, and an era

☆ Observe closely the ups and downs and changes of ordinary individuals in the great era, and explore the social roots of the spiritual dilemma of contemporary people

——"Our lives have improved, but why has our spirit become barren?"

☆ A shocking drama, full of a sense of history that is both tragic and powerless, both personal and detached. ——Historian Luo Xin

☆ "A large amount of waste is bound to be generated in the process of urban development, most of which are people", and the theme of this civilian epic is simply "don't become waste."

——What determines the fate of ordinary people in the midst of tremendous social changes?

Doctor Zhang and Doctor Wang were born in working-class families in the 1970s. During the reform of state-owned enterprises and the rapid transformation of society, they escaped the fate of being left behind and achieved social mobility with the full support of their families and their own intelligence and hard work. However, although they seem to have achieved success, their lives are still full of anxiety and fatigue.

The two authors interviewed dozens of people, salvaged past life scenes from old newspapers, old photos, architectural ruins and oral memories, depicted the personal growth and class leap of Dr. Zhang and Dr. Wang in their half-life, and examined the construction process of their knowledge, dignity and self. At the same time, the book also presents the contemporary Northeast with both depth and breadth based on industrial cities, unit society, scarcity economy, working-class culture, masculinity, major historical events and changes of the times.

By reading the stories of Dr. Zhang and Dr. Wang, we will understand how a series of profound changes at the turn of the century shaped the way of life and spiritual world of a generation. And through the ups and downs of individuals in history, we will also get a glimpse of the outline of the fate of a city and an era.

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A story from a sociological perspective, in which two people, a city, and an era are inseparably linked together. This should be the first of its kind in Chinese writing.

——Philosopher Chen Jiaying

What can we see in these two "successful" doctors from Northeast China? Compared with the laid-off workers often seen in movies, TV shows and literature, they seem to be completely unable to represent the Northeast China in our imagination. But surprisingly, this book with a broad vision and rich details not only allows us to see the Northeast clearly, but also the core of industrial culture; even the limitations and choices of individual lives in the structure of the times over the past 40 years of reform and opening up. So it is not an exaggeration to say that this is not only the story of Dr. Zhang and Dr. Wang, but also the story of several generations of Chinese people.

——Writer Liang Wendao

This is a thrilling drama, full of a sense of history that is both tragic and powerless, both personal and spectatory. Focusing on the individual lives of two doctors, it presents a contemporary Shenyang with both depth and breadth.

——Historian Luo Xin

In recent years, the concept of "Northeast Renaissance" has been very popular. Compared with the lost economic development of Northeast China, the spiritual world of this land has received great attention. Whether it is the Northeast-style comedy and humor, or the humanistic sedimentation left over from the old industrial society, it seems to have become a "rich mine" for people to dig and write about. This book presents a rich history of folk society around major historical events and working-class culture in Shenyang in the past forty years. The author not only has a profound storytelling ability, but also stands from a sociological perspective to closely observe the ups and downs and changes of ordinary families and individuals in the great era.

——Sociologist Yan Fei

The two authors remind us of dispatchers in a factory workshop, making plans, paralleling output, and repeatedly confirming the rhythm of writing, like a canal that backflows after a heavy rain, flowing back from the depths, flowing across the ground, and reshaping the historical and real space. Those irregular images, the dark stains that stray from the side, the marks left by the train, or our actions of gazing, salvaging, and capturing, together constitute the outline of the fate of a batch of semi-finished products, a generation, and a city.

——Ban Yu, writer

In the book, one of Robert E. Park's theories is particularly striking: the process of urban development will inevitably produce a lot of waste, most of which are people. In fact, the struggle of the two doctors' original families over a period of thirty years has always been closely centered on this sentence. The energy, perseverance, patience, and strategy mobilized in this struggle are so much that they are comparable to those required for war. However, the theme of this civilian epic is just "Don't become waste."

——Li Haipeng, writer and media person

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