The Chinese dubbed him the "Father of Modern Nature Writing."

He was nominated for the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2010.

(Not to be confused with the barely younger fashion model who became famous in his 70s!)

I can't find an obit, though...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu_Xianping
(includes partial booklist and link to his Chinese site)

Excerpt:

"Liu was born in Feidong, Anhui province, in 1938. He graduated from the Chinese Department of Zhejiang University in 1961. He is a member of the China Writers Association, the Children's Literature Committee, and various government organisations in
Anhui province. He worked for many years as a teacher, and as editor of Anhui Literature (《安徽文学》). His first publications were in 1957, initially poetry, essays and theory, but stopped writing in 1963. He resumed writing in 1978,
concentrating on nature writing. He was admitted to the China Writers Association in 1982. He has travelled extensively in China, spending long periods of time in the wilds, eg in Xinjiang, Yunnan, Tibet and other areas."


https://www.google.com/search?q=liu+xianping+books&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwintdzt9ePeAhUwneAKHWaQCC4Q_AUIECgD&biw=1280&bih=873
(some book covers)


http://www.worldcat.org/search?qt=worldcat_org_bks&q=liu+xianping&fq=dt%3Abks (includes a few titles in English)

https://muse.jhu.edu/article/376584
Excerpt:

"...In the 1970s he joined a scientific team to study animals in the wild and also began going on field observation treks of his own. His footprints have been left on the ridges of towering mountains as well as the Gobi Desert.

"Liu Xianping resumed his writing in 1978 and dedicated himself to the creation of contemporary books concerning the natural world. His representative works are four novels about the difficulties and hardships children have experienced and endured in
order to protect wild animals, as well as documentaries about his adventures in the natural world. More than 30 species of wildlife are mentioned in his works including giant pandas, golden-monkeys, red-billed leiothrixes, and spotted deer. My Friends in
the Wild is a collection of stories based on the author's thrilling encounters with wild animals during his many expeditions in China.

"Liu Xianping's work is full of humorous and lively language which makes his books not only informative but also absorbing and exciting. His writing is unique in that it is both poetic and philosophical; he consistently adopts an aesthetic angle to
illustrate the beauty and magic of nature..."


Lenona.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)