Ancient China, Life, Myth And Art  •  Edward L. Shaughnessy HISTORY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 144 PAGES A brief survey of the artistic, social, cultural, scientific, mathematic, musical, and literary achievements of ancient China. Shaughnessy presents, through informed text, 80 photographs and 30 illustrations, Buddhist cave paintings, the Terracotta Army, examples of calligraphy and silks, and many more fine examples of the marvels of the ancient Chinese world. (CHN285, $23.00)
Around the Bloc: My Life in Moscow, Beijing, and Havana  •  Stephanie Elizondo Griest BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2004 •  PAPER  • 416 PAGES The offbeat memoirs of a native Texan who spent four years as a volunteer in Moscow, a propaganda officer in Beijing, and a belly dancer in Havana. You may have come across Griest's distinctive voice in a collection of Travelers' Tales, where she is a regular contributor. She's young, a witty observer with a way with words, and utterly passionate about travel. This is her first book, as much memoir as travel account, spanning four years and three continents. (RUS242, $14.95)
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress  •  Sijie Dai  •  Ina Rilke LITERATURE •  2002 •  PAPER  • 208 PAGES A charming, unexpectedly witty, tale of two teenage boys in China sent off to the countryside during Mao's Cultural Revolution. This slim novel celebrates the power of stories and literature and the imagination. (CHN159, $12.95)
Buddhist Art and Architecture  •  Robert Fisher ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1993 •  PAPER  • 216 PAGES A wide-ranging, illustrated survey of Buddhist art, architecture and iconography in the excellent World of Art series. It includes examples from throughout Asia. (ASA30, $18.95)
The Buddhist Handbook  •  John Snelling RELIGION •  1992 •  PAPER  • 345 PAGES Subtitled, "The Complete Guide to Buddhist Schools, Teaching, Practice and History, " this even-handed book is a concise primer covering the history, philosophical foundation and practice of Buddhism. It gives a basic overview of the teachings and practice of Buddhism, including a who's who of contemporary teachers and list of useful addresses around the world. (ASA08, $16.95)
China Map  •  International Travel Maps 2006 •  MAP A fine, double-sided map of China, at a useful scale of 1:3,800,000, featuring colorful shaded relief, indexed with an inset map of central Beijing. Fifth edition. It also shows parts of Korea, Mongolia, Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan and Burma. (CHN06, $11.95)
The China Reader, The Reform Era  •  Orville Schell  •  David Shambaugh HISTORY •  1999 •  PAPER  • 553 PAGES This sourcebook on contemporary China includes first-hand material by Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, along with insightful essays by several scholars on the culture and politics of China over the last 25 years. Dean of the graduate school of journalism at Berkeley and a China scholar, Schell is also the author of Mandate of Heaven and Virtual Tibet. Co-editor and contributor David Shambaugh, professor at George Washington University, is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. (CHN224, $17.95)
Chinese Art  •  Mary Tregear ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1997 •  PAPER  • 216 PAGES A quick, but surprisingly thorough survey of Chinese art, including calligraphy and painting, sculpture and ceramics, as well as garden design, architecture, and various crafts. Part of the "World of Art" series, it is illustrated throughout. (CHN153, $18.95)
Chinese Rugs: A Buyer's Guide  •  Lee Allane GUIDEBOOK •  1994 •  PAPER  • 144 PAGES A guide to the history, techniques and variety of carpets produced throughout China, including typical motifs and materials. It features a practical guide to price and quality for the prospective buyer. (CHN30, $15.95)
Dragon Lady, The Life and Legend of the Last Empress of China  •  Sterling Seagrave BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  1993 •  PAPER  • 601 PAGES (CHN229, $18.95)
Empress Orchid  •  Anchee Min LITERATURE •  2005 •  PAPER  • 346 PAGES A novel of the glorious, decadent last days of 19th-Century Imperial China. Min (Red Azalea, Becoming Madame Mao) combines her tale of a young girl from the provinces who marries an emperor -- and then improbably becomes the Last Empress -- with a lovingly re-created portrait of life in the Forbidden City. Pearl Buck told a much more romanticized tale of the same remarkable woman in Imperial Woman. (CHN267, $14.00)
Farewell My Concubine  •  Kaige Chen 1993 •  DVD The moving story of a fifty-year friendship between two men who meet as children in the Peking Opera. Their friendship continues against the backdrop of China's tumultuous political history, as their roles as king and concubine become widely recognized throughout the region, and as a beautiful woman almost comes between them. (CHN226, $14.99)
Giant Pandas in the Wild, Saving an Endangered Species  •  Lu Zhi NATURAL HISTORY •  2002 •  HARD COVER  • 128 PAGES In this important new book, Dr. Lu Zhi offers an indepth portrait of the giant panda and international conservation efforts to protect the panda and its habitat in China. A researcher since 1985 and former coordinator of WWF's panda program in China, Dr. Zhi chronicles the social lives and population dynamics of 20 individuals in a number of reserves, both in text and photographs. With a foreword by Claude Martin, Director General of WWF-International, and excellent color photos by George Schaller and Lu Zhi. (CHN173, $35.00)
God Lives in St. Petersburg, and Other Stories  •  Tom Bissell LITERATURE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 212 PAGES Bissell (Chasing the Sea) returns to his years in Central Asia as a Peace Corps volunteer in these sharp, witty fictionalized accounts. His six fast-paced tales are set in Kazakhstan, Afghanistan and the Aral Sea. (CAS117, $13.95)
The Golden Days  •  Cao Xueqin  •  David Hawkes LITERATURE •  1974 •  PAPER  • 544 PAGES Volume One of The Dream of the Red Chamber, an epic family tale first published in 1793, (still one of China's favorite novels) beautifully translated, edited and with an introduction by David Hawkes. The Golden Days is the first book in a five-volume masterpiece which follows the fate of the Jia family and the magical stone of the title. It's an absorbing romantic tale, often called the greatest of Chinese novels, as interesting for its commentary on culture, aethestics, religion and world view as for the story. (CHN223, $16.00)
Knopf Mapguide Shanghai  •  Knopf Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2005 •  PAPER  • 48 PAGES Full-color foldout maps make this guidebook a handy and practical way to find information on where to go and what to do in the city. (CHN283, $9.95)
The Last Emperor  •  Bernardo Bertolucci 1987 •  DVD Bernardo Bertolucci's rendering of the true story of Aisin-Gioro Pu Yi, the last emperor of China's Ching Dynasty. Told in flashback, the film begins at Pu Yi's involuntary initiation as emperor in 1908 at age three, and continues through his entire reign in the Forbidden City until his death in 1967. Pu Yi witnesses the dynamic changes of the modernizing empire, experiences the temptations of ultimate power, and is seduced by the Western lifestyle of his Scottish tutor (Peter O'Toole). The film won nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. (CHN225, $14.98)
The Last Panda  •  George Schaller NATURAL HISTORY •  1993 •  PAPER  • 291 PAGES The great naturalist George Schaller spent almost 5 years in the wild in Sichuan province studying the panda in the 1980s. This book is both his description of the great panda in nature, and an eloquent plea for how to save the species in the wild. With 16 color plates. (CHN24, $15.00)
Leaving Mother Lake, A Girlhood at the Edge of the World  •  Yang Erche Namu  •  Christine Mathieu BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2004 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES In this entrancing memoir, Namu, a Chinese pop sensation, recounts her childhood on the shores of Lake Lugu in remote Yunnan. Her culture, the Mosuo, is matrilineal, where women have unusual freedom and power. Namu recounts too the tension between traditions and her own escape from her mother's home and village life in search of a career in music. Cowritten with anthropologist Christine Mathieu. (CHN270, $14.99)
Look What Came From China!  •  Miles Harvey CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1999 •  PAPER  • 32 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8) A slim guide to China, its products, animals, food, tools, crafts and inventions, with color photographs and accompanying text. For children ages 4-8. (CHN155, $6.95)
Mantles of Merit: Chin Textiles from Myanmar, India and Bangladesh  •  David Fraser  •  Barbara Fraser ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2005 •  HARD COVER An abundantly illustrated study of the textiles of the Chin peoples of southern and eastern Asia. With more than 600 color illustrations. (ASA46, $60.00)
Mao, The Unknown Story  •  Jung Chang  •  John Halliday BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR •  2006 •  PAPER  • 814 PAGES In this no-holds-barred biography, the author of Wild Swans and her historian husband reveal Mao as a brutal, power-hungry monster with close ties to Joseph Stalin. Ten years in the making, their extensive research demolishes the myths of Mao a great leader and man of the people. (CHN301, $18.95)
The Mekong, Turbulent Past, Uncertain Future  •  Milton Osborne HISTORY •  2001 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES A cultural history of the great river from prehistory to European exploration, colonial tensions and modern challenges. It's an engaging introduction to the history of Southeast Asia. Osborne has also written an account of the 19th-century search for the source of the Mekong (SEA29). (SEA28, $16.00)
Ming Furniture in the Light of Chinese Architecture  •  Sarah Handler ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2005 •  HARD COVER  • 233 PAGES A beautifully illustrated and authoritative overview of Ming furniture and its architectural setting by art historian Sarah Handler, who specializes in Chinese furniture, architecture and related arts. With 50 black-and-white architectural drawings and 60 full-color photos of Ming furniture from private and museum collections around the world. (CHN318, $50.00)
National Geographic Traveler China  •  Damian Harper GUIDEBOOK •  2007 •  PAPER  • 400 PAGES A generously illustrated guide to China with the usual National Geographic attention to maps and photographs, covering the big cities and the Yangtze, as well as southern, western and northeastern China in unusual depth. Harper writes with authority in a lively, opinionated style; no surprise, since he is also the co-author of three guides on the region for Lonely Planet. With a 50-page appendix of practical travel information. (CHN163, $27.95)
Odyssey Guide Three Gorges of the Yangtze River  •  Raynor Shaw GUIDEBOOK •  2006 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES • NEW Compact, illustrated and up-to-date, this detailed guide focuses on the 120-mile-long Three Gorges section of the Yangtzi, including Chongsing, Yichang and Wuhan. With 12 color maps and diagrams. (CHN368, $21.95)
Odyssey Guide Three Gorges of the Yangtze River  •  Raynor Shaw GUIDEBOOK •  2006 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES • NEW Compact, illustrated and up-to-date, this detailed guide focuses on the 120-mile-long Three Gorges section of the Yangtzi, including Chongsing, Yichang and Wuhan. With 12 color maps and diagrams. (CHN368, $21.95)
Oracle Bones, A Journey Between China's Past and Present  •  Peter Hessler HISTORY •  2007 •  PAPER  • 512 PAGES • NEW Peter Hessler (River Town) captures the confounding pace of change in these tales of travel and conversation in contemporary China. The Beijing correspondent for the New Yorker with a depth of knowledge and love of the place, Hessler draws on his familiarity with the country, linguistic ability and his many friends for this penetrating report from the field. (CHN316, $15.95)
Passions of the Cut Sleeve, The Male Homosexual Tradition in China  •  Bret Hinsch LITERATURE •  1992 •  PAPER  • 256 PAGES A well written, scholarly survey of the traditions of same-sex male love across 3,000 years of Chinese literature -- much livlier than the title would indicate. Hinsch draws from dynastic histories, erotic novels, popular Buddhist tracts, love poetry, legal cases, and joke books in this fascinating overview. (CHN167, $21.95)
Pimsleur Quick & Simple Chinese (Cantonese)  •  Pimsleur Language Method LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2005 •  AUDIO CD Four audio CDs with eight 30-minute lessons in basic Cantonese, covering elementary vocabulary and phrases used in travel and everyday situations. The Pimsleur method emphasizes the use of listening skills without reading materials (so there isn't a book to follow along). It's advertised as "Totally audio: hear it, learn it, speak it." (CHN279, $19.95)
Pimsleur Quick & Simple Chinese (Mandarin)  •  Pimsleur Language Method LANGUAGE & PHRASEBOOKS •  2005 •  AUDIO CD Four audio CDs with eight 30-minute lessons in basic Mandarin, covering elementary vocabulary and phrases used in travel and everyday situations. The Pimsleur method emphasizes the use of listening skills without reading materials (so there isn't a book to follow along). It's advertised as "Totally audio: hear it, learn it, speak it." (CHN280, $19.95)
Religions of China, The World as a Living System  •  David L. Overmyer RELIGION •  1998 •  PAPER  • 125 PAGES This brief primer, geared for a general audience, covers the religions of China from early beliefs to Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. (CHN154, $11.50)
Religions of Tibet in Practice  •  Donald S. Lopez, Jr. RELIGION •  1997 •  PAPER  • 560 PAGES A collection of 36 essays and translated texts by scholars of Tibetan Buddhism, including selections on prayers, pilgrimages, death and ritual. It is a scholarly overview of the culture and religion of Tibet, organized thematically and accessible to the general reader. (TBT16, $37.95)
The Retreat of the Elephants, An Environmental History of China  •  Mark Elvin NATURAL HISTORY •  2006 •  PAPER  • 564 PAGES A comprehensive history of environmental change and its impact upon Chinese culture and politics. Mark Elvin has written prolifically on China, and in this book he focuses on the damage done to China's environment through war, modernization and technological developments, including a farming method which drove the elephant out of its natural habitat. Elvin draws on diverse literature to trace changes over the course of 3,000 years. (CHN221, $24.00)
The River's Tale, A Year on the Mekong  •  Edward Gargan TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2003 •  PAPER  • 352 PAGES A personal, probing chronicle of a 3,000 mile journey on the river from its source in China through Tibet, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia to the Mekong delta in Vietnam. Gargan, a veteran correspondent and bureau chief for the New York Times, spent a year traveling the river. (SEA33, $14.95)
Sky Burial, An Epic Love Story of Tibet  •  Xinran LITERATURE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 206 PAGES Xinran turns the tale of a young Chinese woman's lifelong search for her husband in Tibet, based on an 1994 interview, into a powerful, gut-wrenching tale, evoking the customs, traditions and challenges of contemporary Tibet. Shu Wen's story intersects with some of the darker moments in Chinese history, including the years under Mao's rule and the invasion of Tibet by the People's Liberation Army. (CHN282, $18.95)
Streetlife China  •  Michael Dutton ANTHOLOGY •  1999 •  PAPER  • 320 PAGES A scholarly collection of essays about the realities of living in modern-day China. The book covers a wide range of social, cultural and political subjects, and its focus lies in the changing concept of human rights and how it differs in the Eastern and Western societies. By examining such minute phenomena as the advent of tattoos in Chinese popular culture and broader issues like the effects of Mao Zedong on modern life, the book presents a comprehensive picture of the contemporary society told from a multitude of perspectives. (CHN222, $32.99)
Three Ways of Thought in Ancient China  •  Arthur Waley RELIGION •  1982 •  PAPER  • 216 PAGES An elegantly written, classic introduction to traditional Chinese philosophy. Waley, who provides lyrical translations, discusses three great threads in this slim book: Daoism, Realism and the writings of Meniscus (closely related to Confucianism). Originally published in 1953, Waley's entertaining anecdotes, evident humor and aphorisms, enliven the text. The first section is entitled In the Realm of Nothing Whatever. (CHN164, $17.95)
The Tibetan Book of the Dead, Liberation from Understanding the In Between  •  Robert Thurman CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  1994 •  PAPER  • 275 PAGES A key text as presented by Robert Thurman for a western audience. This edition of the Tibetan guidebooks to dying or "the between" -- written in the 8th or 9th century by Padma Sambhava -- is introduced and translated by Thurman. It's is a spiritual guide to the afterlife, helpfully augmented by Thurman's commentary as well as an overview of Tibetan history and beliefs. With a chapter on Tibet, its history, Buddhist traditions and present plight. Part Two of the book is a translation of prayers. (TBT06, $18.00)
To Live  •  Yimou Zhang 1994 •  DVD A moving film which follows one family from the 1940s through the 1960s in China. The two protagonists, a husband and wife, constantly struggling with poverty, become dedicated Communists during the reign of Mao Zedong and witness the devastating effects of the Cultural Revolution. The director Zhang Yimou was forced by the Chinese government to write a formal apology and banned from making another film for two years following the release of this honest and politically important work. (CHN227, $19.98)
Travelers' Tales China  •  James O'Reilly  •  Larry Habegger  •  Sean O'Reilly ANTHOLOGY •  2004 •  PAPER  • 356 PAGES This eclectic compendium reveals China's history and culture as told by its mostly modern travelers. Contributors include Peter Hessler, Mark Salzman, Gretel Ehrlich and Ji-Li Jiang, who provides the introduction. Organized thematically with sections on Essence of China, Some Things to Do and Going Your Own Way. (CHN217, $18.95)
The Travels of Marco Polo  •  Marco Polo  •  Ronald Lantham TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  1975 •  PAPER  • 380 PAGES The memories of a 13th-century journey to China along the Silk Road, maybe the most famous travel account ever, as edited by Ronald Lantham. Describing exotic plants, birds, precious gems, silks, and spices with a merchant's eye, this superb geographer recounts his 20 years of travel and return to Venice in 1295. (CAS05, $13.95)
Uncle Peter's Amazing Chinese Wedding  •  Lenore Look  •  Yumi Heo LITERATURE •  2006 •  HARD COVER  • 40 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8) (CHN348, $16.95)
Waiting  •  Ha Jin LITERATURE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 308 PAGES A spare, haunting story of of an ineffectual military doctor who tries for 18 years to divorce his peasant wife so he can marry a more sophisticated nurse at his military hospital. Along the way, the story is greatly evocative of quotidian life in China during the Cultural Revolution and after. Though the main characters are not all that likeable, and the story is somewhat tragic, Ha Jin succeeds utterly in communicating the travails of finding love in China during these years. Winner of the National Book Award. (CHN80, $14.95)
Ways of Being Ethnic in Southwest China  •  Stevan Harrell CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2002 •  PAPER  • 370 PAGES A scholarly ethnography of the peoples of Southwest China, including the Nuosu (Yi), Prmi, Naze, and Han. With detailed case studies. (CHN271, $22.50)
Wild West China, The Taming of Xinjiang  •  Christian Tyler CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 336 PAGES A portrait of the changing face of the Xinjiang region in northwest China. (CHN231, $27.95)
A Woman's Asia  •  Marybeth Bond ANTHOLOGY •  2005 •  PAPER  • 310 PAGES These thirty-five personal, often hilarious accounts of women's adventures from China to Sri Lanka to Turkey to Bhutan, not only illuminating the everyday, oft-overlooked cultural practices of Asia, but also giving a glimpse into the thoughts and feelings of the female traveller. Featuring selections from Jan Morris, Pamela Logan and Alison Wright. (ASA49, $17.95)
Yangtze  •  Philip Wilkinson NATURAL HISTORY •  2005 •  HARD COVER  • 168 PAGES Weaving together essays on nature, conservation and history, and illustrated with 120 color photographs and maps, Yantgtze is an illuminating portrait of one of the world's great rivers. (CHN320, $40.00)