世人都想了解中国——专访作家麦家

文/ 肖艳艳

夏日的杭州，绿意葱茏。杭州西溪创意产业园内，阳光透过枝叶在石板路上撒下点点光斑。

麦家的理想谷书吧就在这里，他的多部畅销书也是在这里完成的。

理想谷是麦家私人藏书地，它甚至算不上一家书店，因为这里不卖书，只是提供给热爱阅读的年轻人一个诗意的栖居。

走进来 “读书就是回家”

“读书就是回家。”书吧门口的小黑板上写着麦家打造这个书吧的初衷。轻轻推开玻璃门，纸质书特有的香气扑面而来，四下里满满当当的书架向上延伸到了天花板。这里的每一本书都是麦家亲自为读者挑选的。书吧茶水、看书都是免费，独独没有WiFi。

再往里走，靠墙的书架上才能看到麦家自己的作品。麦家对自己的写作姿态尤其谦卑。一个透明玻璃柜里陈列着二十几本书，是他的长篇处女作《解密》被翻译成不同语种的海外版版本。该书自2002年出版后，被翻译成多国语言，成为世界级畅销书。

为了方便采访，麦家特意把时间安排在闭馆日。说是采访，其实更像是一场读书会。麦家坐在书架下，我们围在四周，听他讲自己的人生和创作故事。不时有趁闭馆日过来碰运气的读者加入进来。

与笔下幽默的语言形成反差的是，麦家有一种孤独的气质。摄像机前的他比较严肃，每一句话都经过深思熟虑，给人一种内敛和神秘的感觉。

2018年法兰克福书展“麦家之夜”。“The Night of Mai Jia”, an event organized at the 2018 Frankfurt Book Fair.

话题从麦家最近一部作品开始。2019年，麦家新作《人生海海》出版，如今已经销售了几百万册。在这部小说中，很多读者发现，“谍战小说之父”不再写熟悉的谍战，而是将背景设置在自己的故乡浙江，讲述一位隐没山村的“上校”起伏壮阔的人生。

对于这一转变，麦家解释，在军营的特殊经历曾给他创作的灵感，但随着离开部队的时间越来越久远，“我需要寻找重新出发的地方，最后决定回到故乡”。

于是，麦家回到了童年，回到了故乡，回到乡村来写内心的一段经历。富春江流域幽默、机智的语言不时闪现在字里行间。作为一个浙江作家，这并不是浙江色彩第一次出现在麦家作品中。

《解密》《暗算》《风声》等作品，虽然写的不是浙江，但也或多或少带有浙江属性。麦家说，故乡对作家来说是非常重要的元素，“我的价值观、我对人的情感，和这片土地分不开，它已经融入了我的血脉”。

所以，在麦家的小说中，不管是故事背景还是人物个性，细品都有浙江味。“这片土地，从来都是只要有机会，就会一下子活跃起来。比如改革开放，浙江的先行性特别明显。这片土地也给了我一种顽强的力量。”麦家说，“这也体现在我的文学作品中，我一直讴歌人在困境中不服输的精神”。

回溯麦家此前每一本作品的主角，虽然与西方作品中的英雄有很大区别，但其具有的忠诚与责任这些品质，本身就符合世界人民的共同价值观，很容易打动人。麦家说，这种具有中国特色的好故事、好人物，早已跨越国界限制，具有一定的世界性。

谈及今后的创作，麦家说：“我是一个浙江的作家，我的根在浙江，我以后的作品还是立足浙江，毕竟我是在这片土地上成长起来的，对它有着深厚的感情。”平时，麦家和很多浙江作家有来往。他也希望大家一起研究浙江这片土地，写出更好的作品。

麦家说，文学作品面临着和这个时代、和脚下的土地进行对话的使命。他认为，作家一方面要把握当下人们的精神状态，一方面要通过作品去丰富他们的内心，甚至在一定意义上引领他们，在精神上给予其向上的力量。

但随着年龄越来越大，写的作品越来越多，他深深地体会到：一个作家，不仅要解决“怎么写”的问题，首先还要解决“为什么写、为谁写”的问题。“我们要为老百姓写，而不是沉迷于那种卿卿我我的小情小调。”麦家说。

走出去 世界需要了解中国

英国著名汉学家蓝诗玲曾在文章中写道，前些年，在英国剑桥大学城最好的学术书店，中国文学古今所有书籍不过占据了书架的一层，长度不足一米。近几年，情况发生了改变。

童年与故乡—麦家《人生海海》创作分享会富阳签售会（2019年）。Mai Jia signs Life Is like Ocean for his young readers in Fuyang, Hangzhou (2019).

在理想谷的照片墙上，一张麦家和各国出版人的合影引起了我们的注意。那是2018年10月9日，法兰克福书展举办的“麦家之夜”，这也是该书展第一次举办中国作家个人主题活动，吸引了20多个国家的近百位出版人。

麦家说，2014年去西语国家的时候才发现自己在国外火了。西班牙首都马德里的公交车上贴着《解密》西语版海报和他的单人照。“我坐火车到巴塞罗那，在火车上被读者认了出来。”麦家说，“我一个名不见经传的中国作家受到这种待遇，有点受宠若惊”。

这一年，美国FSG出版社出版了麦家的《解密》。同年的伦敦书展上，麦家的书一夜间卖出19个版权。2017年英国《每日电讯报》评出的“全球史上20部最佳间谍小说”中，《解密》是亚洲唯一入选的作品。

在英国，出版商企鹅兰登书屋以5万英镑的预付版权购入《解密》的英文版版权，将其收入“企鹅经典文库”。当时，该文库收录过的中国作家作品仅有《红楼梦》《阿Q正传》《围城》和《色戒》。随后，麦家作品《暗算》也被列入这一文库中。

在英语、西班牙语这样的欧洲主流语种版本风靡后，麦家的书在很多其他语种市场上也受到了欢迎。

“其实，《解密》《暗算》都是我十几年前的作品，曾经一个版权都输不出，为什么最近几年突然受到海外青睐？不光是我，这些年中国文学在世界上的地位显著提高，翻译出去的作品数量越来越多。说到底，是我们背后的国家发展起来了。”麦家说，世人都想了解中国，而文学作为认识一个国家、一个民族最便捷的途径，自然受到了关注。

和外国文学在中国的热度相比，中国文学在世界上的影响力还是有限的。麦家的作品在海外受关注的程度确实有点出乎他本人的意料。麦家将自己的成功归结为：世界正急需了解中国。

特别是2008年北京奥运会的成功举办，以及中国经济的快速发展，引起了国际社会的强烈关注。外国人想了解中国，但同时又发现可以了解中国的书籍和读本太少。这给中国文学“走出去”提供了机遇。

近几年，不少中国文学作品在海外读者中风靡。除了麦家的作品，刘慈欣的《三体》系列等登上了欧美国家畅销书榜。

“我相信，只要中国持续发展下去，外界对中国文学就会更感兴趣。”麦家说，文学是了解一个民族、一个国家最客观、最民间的一种方式。随着中国发展越来越快，世界对中国人的好奇心也在增强。

静下来 “取之于文学，还之于文学”

以《解密》成名于文坛以来近20年，麦家的小说无一不被卖出版权，获得影视行业、投资方青睐。如以金钱为衡量标准，他早就能过上可以不写作、靠版权生活的日子了。但他认为写作是他忘掉外面世界、让他安静下来的仪式。

麦家在写作。Mai Jia at writing.

一年中，麦家有300多天在杭州。他的生活简单而自律。他每天读书、写作、带孩子、锻炼身体，状态好的时候可以坚持写五六个小时，一般写三四个小时。麦家说自己喜欢静下心来慢慢打磨作品。他曾经用11年时间完成《解密》，前后修改了17遍，从青年写到了中年。“我们回头看，人要做成事，真不是靠才华、靠聪明，往往是需要隐忍、坚持。”麦家说。

麦家对爱好写作的青年人说，每天坚持写作，其实是一种效率最高的写作方式，“三天打鱼两天晒网”，很难有好的进度。就像健身一样，不一定需要高强度，但需要每天坚持，效果才会明显。

“这次杭州之行最大的惊喜就是理想谷。”“感谢麦家老师！”理想谷几处没被书架遮住的墙面贴满了读者的留言。一旁，工作人员正在为下一期读书会做准备。这一期的话题是《“父与子”的选择》，书友招募信息刚在网上发布，名额便被抢光了。

麦家开创了一个公益计划，他创办数年的微信公众号“麦家陪你读书”，致力于陪伴读者读1000本好书。到现在，已经完成了255本。麦家说，自己“取之于文学，还之于文学”。

理想谷二楼有几个房间，是麦家为有文学梦的青年作者写作而设的，希望他们能在更舒适的环境中追求理想。这些年，麦家不时会到理想谷和读者交流。他曾说，“征服年轻人其实对我来说是一个隐秘的愿望。”

麦家对文学的回馈还不止于此。作为推动文学“走出去”的先行者，他还把自己手中的出版资源分享给身边的作家朋友。经他多方协调，英国企鹅出版社推出了一套五卷本的浙江作家丛书。

如今，对于麦家来说，写作依然占据了他最多的时间。文学是他和世间产生联结的桥梁，也是他与自己和解的方式。

茶香伴着书香，不知不觉天色暗下来。回望理想谷，暖黄色的灯光亮了起来。

麦家，杭州人，中国当代著名作家，中国作家协会副主席、浙江省文联副主席，著有《暗算》《解密》《风声》《人生海海》等6部长篇小说，以及60余部中短篇小说、200余篇散文、150多集(部)剧本。作品被译成30多种语言，在40多个国家出版、100多个国家和地区发行。《暗算》《解密》分别获第七届茅盾文学奖、第六届华语传媒文学年度小说家奖等奖项，并入选英国“企鹅经典”文库，是中国迄今仅有的两部收入该文库的当代小说。最新作品《人生海海》，成为近几年中文图书市场最畅销的作品之一。

The World Hopes to Learn More about China

By Wu Shaokang

In summer, Hangzhou becomes a paradise of lush green.Walking inside the Xixi Culture Creative Industry Park, you can see the stone path dotted with sunlight casting through tree branches and leaves. This is where the bookstore named Mai Jia Ideal Valley is located, and it is in this bookstore that Mai Jia has completed many of his best-sellers. Or rather it is Mai’s personal library, for it does not sell books but only provides a poetic habitat for young people who love reading.

“Reading brings you home.” The small blackboard at the entrance explains why the bookstore was created in the first place.When you gently push open the glass door, you will be welcomed by the unique aroma of paper books and fully stacked bookshelves reaching as high as the ceiling. Every book here is personally selected by Mai for the readers, who could enjoy free tea, free books for reading in the store, but no access to Wi-Fi.

The books written by Mai himself are placed much further on the bookshelves against the wall, showing his humble gesture as a writer. There are 20-odd books placed inside a glass cabinet, which are different translations of his debut full-length novel,

In contrast to the humorous style of his writing, Mai has an air of loneliness and mystery. Our talk started with his latest work,. Published In 2019, it has now sold several million copies.

Through reading this novel, many readers found that “the father of spy novels” changed. Instead of writing his familiar subjects of espionage and war, this time he writes about his hometown in Zhejiang, telling the ups and downs of the life of a colonel who lives like a hermit in a mountain village.

For this change, Mai explained that he had been drawing on his special military experience in writing previous books. Yet since he left the army a too long time go, “I needed to find a place to start again, and finally decided to return to my hometown.”

“人生海海，不畏浮沉”暨《人生海海》200万册纪念活动（2021年）。Mai Jia at an event celebrating the sale of Life Is like Ocean surpassing two million copies(2021).

In Mai’s novels, no matter it is the story background or the character’s personality, everything is more or less influenced by Zhejiang. “On this land, local people would thrive on any opportunity that is on offer. For example, during the Reform and Opening Up, Zhejiang’s pioneering spirit really shines. This land has also endowed me with great strength,” said Mai. “This is also reflected in my books, where I have always eulogized the spirit of people who do not give in.” The protagonists of each of Mai’s previous works, although very different from the Western heroes,have such loyalty and responsibility that align with the common values of the world.

Talking about his writing plan, Mai said, “I am a writer from Zhejiang. It is where my roots are and my future works will be based. After all, I grew up on this land and love it dearly.” Mai and many other Zhejiang writers hope that they can study the land of Zhejiang together and create better works to celebrate it.

On the wall of the Mai Jia Ideal Valley is a photo of Mai and publishers from different countries. The photo was taken on October 9, 2018, at an event called the “Night of Mai Jia”held at the Frankfurt Book Fair. It was the first time the fair held a Chinese-writer-themed event, which attracted nearly 100 publishers from more than 20 countries.

Mai Jia said he found out he has become a global celebrity when he went to Spain in 2014 — Madrid’s buses had been decorated with a poster of his novelin Spanish and a single photo of him. “I was recognized by readers on the train to Barcelona,” said Mai, “and felt a little flattered by this kind of treatment, given that I am just a little-known Chinese writer.” That year, FSG Press in the United States published Mai’s;at the London Book Fair, Mai’s book sold for 19 copy rights overnight. In 2017,rankedthe only Asian work among the world’s “20 Best Spy Novels of All Time”.The UK Penguin Random House paid £50,000 in advance for the copyright of the English version ofand included it in the Penguin Classics, where the only works by Chinese authors are,,andat that time. Later Mai’s another novelwas also added.

According to Mai, the world wants to understand China, and literature as the most convenient way to know about a country naturally receives attention. Compared with foreign literature in China, Chinese literature is still limited in its international influence. The extent to which his work has received attention overseas is indeed a bit unexpected, which Mai attributes to the fact that the world is in desperate need of understanding China.

During the last two decades since he became famous with, all of Mai’s novels have been sold for copyrights, gaining favor of the film and television industry and investors. He could have given up writing once and for all and live a well-off life on his copyrights, but Mai believes that writing is a ritual for him to forget the outside world and stay calm.

Mai has started a public welfare project. He created a WeChat account “Mai Jia Reads with You”, dedicated to accompanying readers to read 1,000 good books. That is his way to “take from literature and return to literature”. Also, there are several rooms on the second floor of the bookstore, providing a comfortable working environment for young authors with literary dreams.And Mai himself often comes to the bookstore to communicate with readers. He once said, “Winning the heart of young people is actually a hidden desire of mine.”

Mai’s contribution to literature does not stop here. As a pioneer for Chinese literature’s “going out”, he has also been sharing his publishing resources with his writer friends. Because of his coordination, Penguin Press released a five-volume series of Zhejiang writers.

Today, writing still occupies most of Mai’s time. Literature is the bridge connecting him and the rest of the world — and a way of reconciliation with himself as well.

Mai Jia is a famous contemporary Chinese writer born in Hangzhou. He is the vice chairman of the Chinese Writers’Association and the vice chairman of the Zhejiang Provincial Federation of Literature. His works have been translated into more than 30 languages, published in more than 40 countries and distributed in more than 100 countries and regions. He won the Seventh Mao Dun Literary Award and the Sixth Chinese Media Literary Award for Novelist of the Year for his novelsandrespectively. His latest work,, has become another best-seller in China.

跨年夜“和麦家同读一本书”（2021年）。“Mai Jia Reads with You” on New Year’s eve (2021).