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Local bilingual poet David Cai Jinhang has released his first bilingual poetry collection, "Wide Awake When I Dream," with two book launch events scheduled for November and December, one in Chinese and one in English. The collection includes over 70 poems in both Chinese and English, presenting the poet's profound reflections on cultural memory and linguistic boundaries in a bilingual format.
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The Chinese session will delve into the challenges and possibilities of bilingual poetry. Featuring guest speaker Dr Tan Chee Lay, Associate Professor at the National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, it will focus on the inherent tensions of bilingual writing and how poetry embodies both personal memories and collective experiences.
 

The English session will examine the musicality of poetry, the art of translation, and the interpenetration of English and Chinese from a broader perspective. Moderated by Chinese language educator Yeong Chan Kong, the panelists will include Dr. Cheong Yun-Yee, a lecturer at the Center for Chinese Language and Literature at Nanyang Technological University, and local poet and translator Daryl Lim Weijie. Together with the poets, the three guests will discuss poetry recitation, reflecting on how words transcend linguistic barriers and find resonance and transcendence between two cultural traditions.