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A publication from The Chinese University of Hong Kong Press (CUHK Press), American Life: A Chinese Historian’s Perspective has been selected for the 2022 Association of University Presses (AUPresses) Book, Jacket, and Journal Show. After being selected for the first-time last year, CUHK Press’s publications have been recognised by the show for the second consecutive year, reflecting its outstanding performance in maintaining its excellence in book design. Of the 491 entries, 91 outstanding entries were selected for this year’s show, with CUHK Press standing alongside global peers such as presses from Yale, Duke and the University of Georgia. They are now on virtual display at the show’s official website.

The CUHK Press is thrilled to be selected for the show again, representing an appreciation and recognition of its efforts in book design from the global publishing community. Committed to fostering cultural and academic exchanges between the East and West, CUHK Press is one of the world’s most renowned publishing platforms for China Studies and Asian Studies. This latest achievement follows a series of accolades received locally and globally over the past decade under the leadership of the Press’s Director Ms. GAN Qi.

The selected publication, American Life: A Chinese Historian’s Perspective by Professor Cho-yun HSU, is a thought-provoking analysis of the struggles faced in American society, written from the perspective of a Chinese professor of history who has lived in the US for 60 years. As both an insider and outsider, Professor Hsu is able to perceive what many other Americans may take for granted. American Life has been selected under the category “Book Jackets and Covers”.

Book designer Mr. CHAN Hei Shing, commented: “The book details the origins of the tensions among different classes and ethnic groups in American society. The disposition of the book title ‘American Life’ is the main visual of the dust jacket: the collapsing and scattering letters resemble isolated individuals in a fragmented society, leaving the hollowed, debossed print on top. Fading colours, including red, white, and blue, adopted from the US national flag, create the image of a ruined and fragmented country.”