The eighteen stories collected in this volume showcase the simple eloquence of a spectacular literary talent. Lu Hsun practically invented modern Chinese literature when he exploded on the literary scene in 1918 with the now famous short story "A Madman's Diary" which he wrote in the vernacular-an astonishingly bold choice at the time. Originally intent on studying medicine, he turned to literature as a way of healing what he perceived as China's spiritual ills. While his stories are conce...

A Brief History of Chinese Fiction grew out of the lecture notes Lu Hsun used when teaching a course on Chinese fiction at Peking University between 1920 and 1924. In December 1923 a first volume was printed and in June 1924 a second volume. In September 1925 these were reprinted as one book. In 1930 the author made certain changes, but all subsequent editions have remained the same.

Lu Hsun (also known as Lu Xun), was the pen name of Zhou Shuren (1881–1936), a leading figure of modern Chinese literature. Writing in Vernacular Chinese as well as Classical Chinese, Lu Xun was a short story writer, editor, translator, literary critic, essayist, and poet. In the 1930s he became the titular head of the League of Left-Wing Writers in Shanghai.Lu Xun was born into a family of landlords and government officials in Shaoxing, Zhejiang; the family's financial resources d...

From the Nobel Prize–winning author of The Good Earth, the New York Times –bestselling biographical novel of the concubine who became China's last empress.In Imperial Woman, Pulitzer Prize-winner Pearl S. Buck brings to life the amazing story of Tzu Hsi, who rose from concubine status to become the working head of the Qing Dynasty.Born from a humble background,...

"A fascinating novel, similar to Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha . . . A revisionist portrait of a beautiful and strong-willed woman" ( Houston Chronicle ).A San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the YearFrom Anchee Min, a master of the historical novel, Empress Orchid sweeps readers into the heart of the Forbidden City to tell the fascinating story ...

Experience the excitement, despair, drama, and tragedy of China’s last emperor in this gripping autobiography.In 1908 at the age of two, Henry Pu Yi ascended to become the last emperor of the centuries-old Manchu dynasty. After revolutionaries forced Pu Yi to abdicate in 1911, the young emperor lived for thirteen years in Peking’s Forbidden City, but with none of the power his birth afforded him. The remainder of Pu Yi’s life was lived out in a topsy-turvy fashion:...

"Admirers of Empress Orchid will be interested in this sequel. Others may find the introduction to relatively modern Chinese history a revelation" ( Rocky Mountain News).During the tumultuous end of the nineteenth century in China, the only constant was the power wielded by one person: the resilient, ever-resourceful Tzu Hsi, Lady Yehonala—or Empress Orchid—as readers came to know her in Anchee Min's critically acclaimed novel covering the first p...

The growing interest both in this country and abroad in the historical study of religions is one of the noticeable features in the intellectual phases of the past decades. The more general indications of this interest may be seen in such foundations as the Hibbert and Gifford Lectureships in England, and the recent organization of an American committee to arrange in various cities for lectures on the history of religions, in the establishment of a special department for the subject at the ...

The 8-in-1 CHINESE CLASSICS brings together in one volume some of the greatest Chinese clazzical writings of all time. Here, in full, are:THE ART OF WAR (the full 13 chapters)THE ANALECTS OF CONFUCIUS (the full 20 chapters)THE SAYINGS OF MENCIUS (the full 28 chapters)THE SHI CHING (aka: Shi King or The Book of Songs - the full 4 Parts, 29 'Books')THE TRAVELS OF FA HIEN (40 chapters)THE SORROWS OF HAN (4 Acts)

This epic saga of brotherhood and rivalry, of loyalty and treachery, of victory and death forms part of the indelible core of classical Chinese culture and continues to fascinate modern-day readers.In 220 EC, the 400-year-old rule of the mighty Han dynasty came to an end and three kingdoms contested for control of China. Liu Pei, the legitimate heir to the Han throne, elects to fight for his birthright and enlists the aid of his sworn brothers, the impulsive giant ...

The Book of Chuang Tzu draws together the stories, tales, jokes and anecdotes that have gathered around the figure of Chuang Tzu. One of the great founders of Taoism, Chaung Tzu lived in the fourth century BC and is among the most enjoyable and intriguing personalities in the whole of Chinese philosophy.

'The Master said, "If a man sets his heart on benevolence, he will be free from evil"'The Analects are a collection of Confucius's sayings brought together by his pupils shortly after his death in 497 BC. Together they express a philosophy, or a moral code, by which Confucius believed everyone should live. Upholding the ideals of wisdom, self-knowledge, courage and love of one's fellow man, he argued that the pursuit of virtue should be every individual's supreme goal. And...