Asian History

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  1. A Pioneer in Yokohama

    C.T. Assendelft de Coningh
    Edited and Translated, with an Introduction, by Martha Chaiklin

    "A great read—I couldn’t put it down! A Pioneer in Yokohama truly brings the earliest months of the Japanese treaty port to life. From the brief Japanese 'Gold Rush' to duels and terrorist attacks, from the perils of international commerce to hilarious problems of translation and miscommunication, Dutchman De Coningh’s memoir provides vivid insights into both nineteenth-century trade and Yokohama’s international community. Moreover, the extraordinary sleuth work done by translator Chaiklin to identify even the most preposterous-seeming events and characters adds the spice of historical confirmation to the drama. . . . A great resource for researchers, classrooms, and casual readers alike."
         —Sarah Thal, University of Wisconsin-Madison

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  2. A Tale of Two Melons

    Sarah Schneewind

    "Undergraduates will join specialists in enjoying this feast of melons. Schneewind's marvelous little book is at once a primer in some key aspects of China's traditional civilization and history, as well as a case study of an obscurely understood event that took place in 1372, in the reign of Taizu, founder of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). When two melons share a single stalk, and a local grower presents the anomaly to the emperor, the symbolism, the intentions of the giver, the reaction of the recipient, and the meaning of the whole act to observers and later commentators turn out to be anything but straightforward. Divergent interpretations began immediately, and continue to the present day."
         —John Dardess,  University of Kansas

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  3. Bashō: Travel Writings

    Matsuo Bashō
    Translated and Edited by Steven D. Carter

    "Destined to delight readers with its vibrant, spot-on translations, this definitive collection of haiku grandmaster Bashō’s travel writings, in prose as well as poetry, conveys the exquisite pleasures and heartbreaks of the road as a metaphor for life itself." —Adam L. Kern, University of Wisconsin–Madison

    "The travel writings of Matsuo Bashō are of enormous literary importance, and so it is a joy to see them collected in this compact volume, in translations of exemplary elegance, faithfulness, and accessibility. The annotations are especially valuable: they show a solid grasp of the author’s life, work, and times, and provide rich and detailed background information about allusions to Chinese and Japanese classics. Along with the high quality of the translations themselves, this thorough commentary makes the book a significant scholarly resource and will help readers appreciate the density and delicacy of Bashō’s writing. A very welcome addition to the English-language literature on one of the central poets of the Japanese tradition." —David B. Lurie, Columbia University

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  4. Bing: From Farmer's Son to Magistrate in Han China

    Michael Loewe

    "This book is wonderful. Only someone with Loewe's deep and broad knowledge could provide such a work of historical fiction that gives life to the gleanings of historical research that are too scattered and incomplete for the less skilled to harvest. Add to this the interesting story and this makes for an effective, useful supplementary reading for courses on Chinese history." —Steven Davidson, Southwestern University

    "Only a master of the history of the early empires in China such as Michael Loewe could have spun this story tracing the gradual rise of a sympathetic character from plow boy to the official ranks at the Han court. Teachers will surely want to assign it to their students, as it perfectly illustrates key points that Loewe has made in more academic publications, for example, his Everyday Life in Early Imperial China during the Han Period 202 BC-AD 220. Comparative historians will find a wealth of information in it, including helpful notes suggesting further readings. Bing is as good as it gets in historical fiction." —Michael Nylan, University of California, Berkeley 

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  5. China: A History

    Harold M. Tanner

    "Tanner has written an excellent text on Chinese history which offers a fine balance between the traditional and the modern. He also charts a good balance between studies of the elite, government, philosophy and diplomacy and, on the other hand, analyses of ordinary people, economic institutions, social patterns, and folk religion. The book provides a comprehensive view of Chinese culture, including developments in literature and the arts. A generous selection of illustrations facilitates comprehension of and pleasure in the visual arts. Finally, Professor Tanner's consideration of Western contact with China and the attendant problems and gains is judicious and informative."
         —Morris Rossabi, Distinguished Professor of History, City University of New York

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  6. China: A History, Volume 1

    Harold M. Tanner

    China: A History, Volume 1: From Neolithic Cultures through the Great Qing Empire (10,000 BCE—1799) — Now available in two volumes, this accessible, yet rigorous, introduction to the political, social, and cultural history of China provides a balanced and thoughtful account of the development of Chinese civilization from its beginnings to the present day. Each volume includes ample illustrations, a full complement of maps, a chronological table, extensive notes, recommendations for further reading and an index.

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  7. China: A History, Volume 2

    Harold M. Tanner

    China: A History, Volume 2: From the Great Qing Empire through the People's Republic of China (1644—2009) — Now available in two volumes, this accessible, yet rigorous, introduction to the political, social, and cultural history of China provides a balanced and thoughtful account of the development of Chinese civilization from its beginnings to the present day. Each volume includes ample illustrations, a full complement of maps, a chronological table, extensive notes, recommendations for further reading and an index.

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  8. Daily Life in the Mongol Empire

    George Lane

    “[A] general history book that uses primary source material throughout. It introduces students to the importance of primary sources and stresses how these early texts provide the evidence and foundations for all the words, ideas, and thoughts that make up traditional history books. The excellent biographies, including one listing many of the translated primary source materials, ensure that this book will be an essential component in any library of the Mongol Empire.”
         —Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies

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  9. Genghis Khan and Mongol Rule

    George Lane

    "[With] implications for such current themes as globalization, global villages, and global conditions for peace . . . this book tells a grand story in the brief compass of seven chapters, with a well-written historical introduction, a helpful chronology, sixteen biographies portraying the international cast of personages who traversed empires, and a glossary indispensable to a work of this nature. Twenty-one primary documents give historical credence to the Mongol story itself, a story that is told only in the oral tradition of The Secret History of the Mongols. Maps and illustrations round out the material in support of the text."
         —The History Teacher

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  10. Governing China

    John W. Dardess

    “This compact narrative history of government institutions and their dialectical relation to society makes a perfect introduction to traditional China for political science, modern history, and comparative politics classes. The thesis, upheld by both specifics in lively prose and thought-provoking cross-period comparisons, is that unity, however valorized, always required hard work: military, political, and cultural creativity amidst ever-changing ethnic, class, and religious formations. Dardess also washes out old libels on non-Han, female, and eunuch power holders simply by recounting the facts.”
         —S. Schneewind, University of California, San Diego

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  11. Master Sun's Art of War

    Sun Tzu
    Translated, with Introduction, by Philip J. Ivanhoe

    “P. J. Ivanhoe is one of the English-speaking world’s foremost translators and interpreters of classical Chinese philosophical texts. His translation of the Sunzi Bingfa reads beautifully, adorned only by sobering photographic plates of the famed terracotta army of the first Qin emperor that turn one back to the text in a properly reflective mood. The Introduction and endnotes are blessedly spare, providing just the right amount of interpretive scholarship to assist comprehension of the text, while not interfering with its intrinsic simplicity, clarity, and profundity.”
        —Sumner B. Twiss, Distinguished Professor of Human Rights, Ethics, and Religion, Florida State University

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  12. Matteo Ricci and the Catholic Mission to China, 1583–1610

    R. Po-chia Hsia

    Series: Passages: Key Moments in History

    "A highly accessible introduction to the history of the Jesuits in China. Hsia offers a clear and concise overview of the key figures in this crucial episode of intercultural encounter: the first intellectual and cultural meeting of Europeans and Chinese. . . . In addition to providing a broad vision of the European and Asian contexts for Ricci’s work in the introductory essay, Hsia gives a valuable selection of documents from both Chinese and Western sources in translation . . . [including] items that genuinely demonstrate the two sides of this cultural exchange."
         —Liam Matthew Brockey, Professor of History, Michigan State University

     

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  13. Records of the Three Kingdoms in Plain Language

    Translated, with Introduction and Annotations, by Wilt L. Idema and Stephen H. West

    "Idema and West have been collaborating on the production of scholarly works on, and translations of, Chinese vernacular literature for decades and their work has set a very high standard for scholarly value, accuracy, and readability. This is their second volume on popular treatments of the famous Three Kingdoms period, a fascinating age that has dominated as a topic both traditional Chinese fiction and drama. . . . Records of the Three Kingdoms in Plain Language . . . presents a comprehensive introduction to all of the main characters (Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Cao Cao, Zhou Yu, etc.) and events (the Oath in the Peach Garden, The Battle at the Red Cliff, The Single Sword Meeting, etc.) that are so well known in China and deserve to be even better known in the West."  —David Rolston, University of Michigan

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  14. Samurai and the Warrior Culture of Japan, 471–1877

    Edited and Translated, with an Introduction, by Thomas Donald Conlan

    Listen to Thomas Conlan's interview with Jingyi Li about Samurai and the Warrior Culture of Japan on The New Books Network here.

    "This sourcebook provides, for the first time in English, translations of the key primary sources for the study of the history of the samurai across all eras of Japanese history. Conlan has framed these sources with compelling historical analysis, making the book required reading not only for students of the warrior class but for everyone interested in the broad sweep of Japanese history. This is an astounding resource."  —Morgan Pitelka, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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  15. Six Records of a Life Adrift

    Shen Fu
    Translated, with Introduction and Notes, by Graham Sanders

    "Shen Fu’s Six Records of a Life Adrift is the most intimate document at our disposal of private life in late imperial China. Graham Sanders now provides us with a new translation for the 21st century, which is not only well researched but also highly readable." —Wilt Idema, Harvard University

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  16. The Arthaśāstra

    Edited and Translated, with an Introduction, by Patrick Olivelle and Mark McClish

    "The translations are the collaborative product of the two leading authorities today on the Arthaśāstra. . . . Their work is consistently, meticulously accurate throughout, yet written in the most straightforward and direct manner imaginable. The material prefatory to each translated section is, again, clear and accessible. . . . Complex matters are effectively distilled in plain language, and the key issues brought out. Superb on all counts. I have been awaiting such a volume for a long time." —Timothy Lubin, Washington and Lee University

    "McClish and Olivelle's general Introduction to the Arthaśāstra is destined to become a classic in the field of South Asian studies; they have translated the text itself in an accessible style that students and general readers alike will comprehend and enjoy.” —James Frey, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh

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  17. The Description of the World

    Marco Polo
    Translated, with an Introduction and Annotations, by Sharon Kinoshita

    "Marco Polo’s account provided both what was thought to be a reliable guide to East Asia—Columbus carried with him a heavily annotated copy of Marco Polo’s work during his own expedition to the Americas—and an intriguingly fantastical account that for centuries has continued to fuel the imagination of poets and artists. Kinoshita’s superb, groundbreaking translation brilliantly renders into modern English this crucial text of the Middle Ages. Indispensable in the undergraduate and graduate classroom, The Description of the World will also appeal to a wide range of readers curious about the medieval encounter of East and West."
         —Suzanne Conklin Akbari, University of Toronto

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  18. The East India Company, 1600–1858

    Ian Barrow

    Series: Passages: Key Moments in History

    "Ian Barrow has written a concise yet engaging, rich, and detailed history of the East India Company—its rise to power, evolution, and eventual demise. This book will be read with great interest by students as well as those general readers seeking a better knowledge of the world's first multi-national corporation and its important influence in the creation of the modern South Asian world."  —Michael Dodson, Indiana University Bloomington

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  19. The Four Books: The Basic Teachings of the Later Confucian Tradition

    Daniel K. Gardner

    In this engaging volume, Daniel Gardner explains the way in which the Four Books—Great Learning, Analects, Mencius, and Maintaining Perfect Balance—have been read and understood by the Chinese since the twelfth century.  Selected passages in translation are accompanied by Gardner's comments, which incorporate selections from the commentary and interpretation of the renowned Neo-Confucian thinker, Zhu Xi (1130-1200).

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  20. The Government of the Qin and Han Empires

    Michael Loewe

    In this concise volume, Michael Loewe provides an engaging overview of the government of the early empires of China.  Topics discussed are: the seat of supreme authority; the structure of central government; provincial and local government; the armed forces; officials; government communications; laws of the empire; control of the people and the land; controversies; and problems and weaknesses of the imperial system.  Enhanced by details from recently discovered manuscripts, relevant citations from official documents, maps, a chronology of relevant events, and suggestions for further reading keyed to each topic, this work is an ideal introduction to the ways in which China’s first emperors governed.

     

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  21. The Journal of Wu Yubi

    Wu Yubi
    Translated, with Introduction and Commentary, by Theresa Kelleher

    In this rare firsthand account of an individual's pursuit of sagehood, the early Ming dynasty scholar and teacher Wu Yubi chronicles his progress and his setbacks, as he strives to integrate the Neo-Confucian practices of self-examination and self-cultivation into everyday life. In more than three hundred entries, spanning much of his adult life, Wu paints a vivid picture, not only of the life of the mind, but also of the life of a teacher of modest means, struggling to make ends meet in a rural community.

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  22. The Mission of Friar William of Rubruck

    Translated by Peter Jackson, Introduction, Notes, and Appendices, by Peter Jackson and David Morgan

    "[A] gem . . . Jackson's emendations are judicious, his translation reads well. . . . The exemplary work of Peter Jackson and David Morgan will remain indispensable to all interested in the wealth of information contained in Rubruck's report."
         —Denis Sinor, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society

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  23. The Perry Expedition and the "Opening of Japan to the West," 1853–1873

    Paul H. Clark

    Series: Passages: Key Moments in History

    "In this concise volume, Clark provides a nice split between detailed yet engaging narrative history—of the sort required to understand Japan in the context of the nineteenth century world—and primary sources that include updated translations, previously unused sources, classic texts, and helpful visual materials. A welcome addition to world, East Asian, and Japanese history courses." —Michael Wert, Marquette University

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  24. The Rise of the Mongols: Five Chinese Sources

    Edited and Translated, with an Introduction, by Christopher P. Atwood

    "Our modern fascination with the Mongol empire only increases with each passing year. One global myth even claims that Chinggis Khan’s DNA can be found among most of the races of the world today—a story of genetic seeding that surely testifies to the obsessive awe with which the rulers of the largest empire in the history of the world are still held. The Rise of the Mongols: Five Chinese Sources, is thus a timely, important, and welcome addition to the limited sources on the Mongols currently available to us in English translation. Unlike the Yuanshi—the Chinese history of the Mongol dynasty that is retroactively written—Christopher Atwood’s and Lynn Struve’s five Chinese sources recount the important early days of the Mongol ascension to power through contemporary and even eyewitness accounts situated in both southern and northern China. Whether you're teaching Marco Polo, or The Secret History of the Mongols, or courses in early globalism, you’ll find this invaluable collection of newly-translated Chinese sources indispensable.” —Geraldine Heng, author of The Invention of Race in the European Middle Ages, and Founder and Director of the Global Middle Ages Project

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