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Blog Interview with Eliot Pattison

Written on: June 4th, 2009 in Reviews

I’ve written before about the tremendous Inspector Shan mystery series by Eliot Pattison. Set in Tibet, they are a combination of political thriller, procedural, anthropological/theological studies, and cries of outrage against the Chinese occupation of Tibet, its continuing persecution of political and religious dissent, and their attempts to extinguish traditional Buddhist culture in the region.

Recently I arranged by email and blog an interview with the Edgar-award winning author. Read the interview and check out the Inspector Shan novels- you won’t be disappointed.

Q: Can you summarize about your background with China and the Tibetan struggle? How did you first become aware of the situation in Tibet?
Have you written non-fiction about the issue- and why did you decide on a fiction approach?

I have long been a globetrotter, in both my professional and personal lives. Fortunate enough to have been able to visit China at the early stages of its “opening,” I experienced much of the country from many different perspectives. Given my long-standing interest in Asian history and Buddhism, it wasn’t long before I started exploring surviving Tibetan Buddhist temples. From the first moment I entered the first of these temples and saw the heavy police presence I knew something was wrong. The more I saw the nervousness, even fear, in the eyes of the monks, the more I wanted to understand the experience of Tibet and Tibetans at the hands of the Chinese. It soon became clear that the Chinese have been systematically dismantling a very intellectual, virtuous, enlightened culture and I wanted to find a way to cast a spotlight on that wrenching destruction. While I speak about Tibet in various forums, I confine my writing on Tibet to my Shan novels. I have long believed that when done well, fiction can be far more compelling, even more truthful in its own way, than nonfiction.

Q: What kind of sources do you use for the historical and cultural details? Most people have only heard of the Uighur people because of the resistance fighters who are held in Guantanamo Bay- what are some of the best books or other resources you have used, or would recommend to people interested in learning more about the Tibetan exile, minority cultures in China, and other related topics?

My books are informed by my own eyewitness experiences, dialogue with Chinese and Tibetans all over the world, close monitoring of current events in Tibet, and decades of avid reading. There are many compelling first hand accounts of, sometimes by, the Tibetans and other minority peoples of central Asia, written both before and after the rise of modern China. I have a large collection of these books, many of which I delight in picking up and rediscovering years after my first read. There are dozens of books I could recommend to someone interested in starting a similar journey, some of which I mention in the Notes following each of my novels. Some of the best would be John Avedon’s In Exile from the Land of Snows, Peter Fleming’s Bayonets to Lhasa, Blake Kerr’s Sky Burial, Harry Wu’s Bitter Winds, Tsering Shakya’s The Dragon in the Land of the Snows, and Dundul Tsarong’s In the Service of his Country.

Q: I find the books hard-boiled in the sense that terrible things happen all the time- both in the situation as a whole, and to individuals in particular- the end of Water Touching Stone was a great example. Is the purpose of the dramatic arc theological or purely editorial?

As a mystery writer, I have certain obligations to keep my readers engaged with plot twists and turns, including “terrible things.” But I set off not just to write mysteries but to capture the realities of life in modern Tibet, which include many terrible events. I believe one of the greatest tragedies of the past century is the Chinese destruction of Tibet. That tragedy is still unfolding. Wrenching, inhuman actions are endured by Tibetans everyday, usually with great compassion and bravery. I work hard to show both these sides in my books.

Q: It seems absurd to expect that “justice be done” given the realities of the occupation, but that’s always been held to be the key to a satisfying mystery- how do you navigate the expectations inherent to the genre and still provide the dharma teaching that is present in these books?

All my books, not just the Shan mysteries, explore the meaning of justice, which is a stark question for people who have been abandoned by their governments. I don’t really seek to deliberately navigate between genre and theology, I just try to highlight the cultural and religious underpinnings of justice and let the reader decide from there. In the end justice finds it way despite, and even in defiance of, the institutions of justice imposed by the government.

Q: How long can the Inspector avoid permanent exile? He’s narrowly avoided it in the past- could he survive absence from Tibet either emotionally or professionally? It’s hard to see him sleuthing in an English vicarage or a U.S. Chinatown

Although I have had readers and editors suggest that Shan should emigrate to America, I expect he will stay close to his spiritual roots, and to his son, who is imprisoned in the Tibetan gulag. Tibet and the surrounding regions, of course, provide a rich tapestry of settings and themes, more than enough to keep Shan and, hopefully, readers, engaged

.

Q: Two or three years have elapsed between each book in the series? Can we expect another Inspector Shan book soon?

The sixth Shan book has just been released. Shan’s journey has not concluded.

If you have questions for the author, or want to comment on the books, post a comment below and I will pass it on and post Eliot’s responses!