Book on post-quake lives of teenager survivors published

CHENGDU -- A book about the post-quake lives of 18 people who were affected by the Wenchuan earthquake as teenagers was published recently, before the 10th anniversary of the quake, its editor said Sunday at a book promotion event.

With pictures and cartoons, the book collects the life stories written by the 18 survivors, who have been hailed as heroes and heroines for their courageous acts and optimistic attitudes during the 8.0-magnitude quake, which hit Wenchuan, Southwest China's Sichuan province on May 12, 2008.

Zhang Guowen, the book's editor, met the teenagers when he was in the process of writing another book after the quake. He kept contact with them and became a close friend. He hopes their stories will encourage and inspire more young people.

The book was published by Sichuan Lexicographical Press.

Ten years ago, Xue Xiao, one of the story-tellers in the book, was buried in rubble after the earthquake toppled his school in Mianzhu, Sichuan. As he was rescued, his plea "give me a coke with ice please" gained him the nickname "Coke Boy." Xue's right arm was later amputated.

Xue, 27, now works for Coca-Cola, after graduating from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics in 2013.

Reviewing the past 10 years, Xue said that he never gave up on himself.

"I trumped adversities with an optimistic attitude, just like I did when I was trapped for 80 hours in the rubble," he said at the event.