HONG KONG (AFP) ― Acclaimed Chinese author Bi Feiyu on Thursday won Asia’s top literary prize for his “Three Sisters,” set during the Cultural Revolution. Bi edged out four other shortlisted authors to secure the $30,000 Man Asian Literary Prize with the story of three women who “strive to change the course of their destinies” in one of China’s most chaotic political periods. “When I entered th...

STOCKHOLM (AFP) ― In one life, Per Olov Enquist has been an oppressed child, an athlete, a journalist and a depressed and destructive alcoholic, but in another life ― the one that really counts in his eyes ― he is an author, a giant in the world of Swedish literature. Spry for his 76 years, Enquist tells AFP in an interview that he is savoring “a different life,” which is also the title of his l...

Fears about health risks rose dramatically in Japan on Tuesday with news of a greater radiation release and renewed warnings to remaining residents within 20 miles to stay indoors. Japanese officials said that more radiation was released at a nuclear plant disastrously damaged by last week’s tsunami. Prime Minister Naoto Kan said radiation had spread from four reactors. “The level seems very hi...

The government in cooperation with Korea Tourism Organization and local tourism companies plans to publish condolences in Japanese newspapers next week. “In the wake of the latest massive earthquake and tsunami Japanese people are suffering greatly. To console them, the KTO and the local tourism industry are in talks to put a condolences advertisement in the Japanese media,” Vice Culture Ministe...

One of the most popular resolutions is to quit smoking, but according to a research result, those in their 40s are most unlikely to stick to their pledge while those over 60s tend to keep their promises. According to the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs’ study of 800 adult male smokers registered at smokers’ clinics nationwide between 2006 and 2008, 18.4 percent have succeeded in qu...

South Korea on Thursday welcomed an agreement with France to transfer centuries-old Korean royal books from Paris to Seoul between March and May beginning with the first shipment later this month. Officials from the national museums of the two countries signed the agreement in Paris on Wednesday to transport 297 volumes of the "Oegyujanggak" to Seoul in four shipments from March 28, according to...