Expat releases book on life in China during COVID-19 battle

CHONGQING－A Canadian teacher has published a book chronicling his life in China while the country was making an all-out effort to battle COVID-19 early last year.

Kai's Diary, written by Jorah Kai Wood, records his life in Chongqing from Jan 20 to March 18, a time when the coronavirus was ravaging the country. The book is now available in both English and Chinese in China.

At a meeting with readers last month, Wood shared why he wrote the book and his feelings about the epidemic control and prevention measures China has taken.

Having lived in Chongqing since 2014, Kai is a teacher at Chongqing Foreign Language School and an editor for iChongqing, an English website based in Chongqing.

Wood's first diary entry was posted on Jan 20, when Zhong Nanshan, a renowned respiratory expert and head of a high-level expert team of China's National Health Commission, confirmed human-to-human transmission of the new virus for the first time.

His remarks immediately sounded an alarm as the traditional Spring Festival holiday was less than a week away and hundreds of millions of Chinese were expected to embark on homebound trips.

Since then, China has taken swift and strict measures to control the spread of the virus, including putting Wuhan, a megacity hit hard by COVID-19 at that time, in a monthslong lockdown and placing restrictions on movement during the holiday nationwide.

By recording how Chinese people did their shopping, how community staff persuaded people to stay at home and how they delivered daily commodities for seniors under such difficult situations through a foreigner's perspective, Wood revealed how Chinese people fought against the deadly virus under the guidance of the local and central government.

He also wrote how local residents' attitudes evolved from initially downplaying the severity of the virus, to feelings of panic, to cooperating with the community in an orderly manner, which led to them finally seeing life return to normal.

He simultaneously posted his diary entries on Facebook and in no time was inundated with messages. CTV News in Canada displayed his entries on its website from late January to early March.

In the meeting with his readers, Wood used three words to describe China's epidemic fight－careful, responsible and vigilant.

"In the very beginning, China made swift decisions to close highways, lock the city ... Then it kept contact tracing, found the exposed and did numerous tests. Although now the country is entering into the post-pandemic period, China still remains vigilant for any emergency,"Wood said.

"Many people around the globe think combating COVID-19 is their right. They can choose to wear a mask or not, to stay at home or not. But I think it's more about an obligation.

"People should be more responsible for their family, friends as well as the whole world."