Asian history Books
Cambridge University Press Uncivil Liberalism
Book SynopsisUncivil Liberalism studies how ideas of liberty from the colonized South claimed universality in the North. Recovering the political theory of Dadabhai Naoroji, India''s pre-eminent liberal, this book offers an original global history of this process by focussing on Naoroji''s pre-occupation with social interdependence and civil peace in an age of growing cultural diversity and economic inequality. It shows how Naoroji used political economy to critique British liberalism''s incapacity for civil peace by linking periods of communal rioting in colonial Bombay with the Parsi minority''s economic decline. He responded by innovating his own liberalism, characterized by labour rights, economic republicanism and social interdependence maintained by freely contracting workers. Significantly, the author draws attention to how Naoroji seeded ''Western'' thinkers with his ideas as well as influencing numerous ideologies in colonial and post-colonial India. In doing so, the book offers a compelliTrade Review'This important book brings to us a new Dadabhai Naoroji by taking him out of the confining narrative of economic nationalism and showing him as a global figure who redefined liberalism by putting the question of labour and labour rights at its very heart. The author offers us an opening towards a new history of global economic thought that could transform how we understand the remit of political philosophy today.' Prathama Banerjee, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, Delhi'By far the most sophisticated study of Naoroji's career, Visana's book is also an account of the making of Indian liberalism in its most universal form – that defined by political economy. Rather than being derived from a dialogue with European ideas, however, he explores the paradox of how this universal form emerged within the lifeworld of one of India's smallest communities, the Parsis of Bombay.' Faisal Devji, University of Oxford'Uncivil liberalism is a fascinating and innovative analysis of one of the most perceptive liberal thinkers of the nineteenth century. In this impressive monograph, Visana unpacks the sophisticated and multi-layered political philosophy of 'the Grand Old Man of India', places it in its historical context and explains its relevance and long-term significance.' Eugenio F. Biagini, University of Cambridge'Uncivil Liberalism recovers Dadabhai Naoroji's radical liberalism in all its complexity. The author's rich and engaging account sets in its global context Naoroji's famous argument that imperial monopoly capitalism was draining India of its wealth and its moral resources. Visana takes us from Naoroji's roots in the Parsi social reform movements of 1840s Bombay to his encounters with Irish republicans, Fabians, and his own working-class constituents in Britain to explore Naoroji's capacious political vision of a diverse commercial society grounded in labour rights.' Jennifer Pitts, University of ChicagoTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1. Sociality in an Imperial and Industrial Age; 2. Sociality and the Parsis of Western India; 3. Civil Society and Social Reform; 4. Conceptualizing the Drain Theory; 5. Making Commercial Society in India; 6. Making Commercial Society in Britain; 7. The Afterlives of Naoroji's Political Thought; Conclusion; References; Index.
£67.50
Cambridge University Press Justice After Mao
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£28.49
Cambridge University Press The Mizo Discovery of the British Raj
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£28.49
Cambridge University Press The Pashtun Borderland
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£38.00
Cambridge University Press The Gods of the Sea
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£28.49
Cambridge University Press Neutrality and Collaboration in South China
Book SynopsisHelena F. S. Lopes analyses the layers of collaboration that developed from neutrality in Macau during the Second World War. Exploring the intersections of local, regional and global dynamics, she unpicks the connections between a plurality of actors with competing and collaborative interests in the Portuguese-administered enclave of Macau.
£28.49
Cambridge University Press Ethical Empire
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£28.49
Cambridge University Press China and the Philippines
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£28.49
Cambridge University Press The Port
Book SynopsisAt the crossroads of China and Southeast Asia, The Port (present-day Hà Tiên), under the autonomous rule of the Chinese creole Mo clan, prospered as a free-trade emporium during the eighteenth century. Its remarkable story sheds fresh light on a transitional period in maritime East Asian history.
£26.96
Taylor & Francis The Iberian World
Book SynopsisThe Iberian World: 1450â1820 brings together, for the first time in English, the latest research in Iberian studies, providing in-depth analysis of fifteenth- to early nineteenth-century Portugal and Spain, their European possessions, and the African, Asian, and American peoples that were under their rule.Featuring innovative work from leading historians of the Iberian world, the book adopts a strong transnational and comparative approach, and offers the reader an interdisciplinary lens through which to view the interactions, entanglements, and conflicts between the many peoples that were part of it. The volume also analyses the relationships and mutual influences between the wide range of actors, polities, and centres of power within the Iberian monarchies, and draws on recent advances in the field to examine key aspects such as Iberian expansion, imperial ideologies, and the constitution of colonial societies.Divided into four parts and combiniTable of ContentsIntroduction. Part 1: THE IBERIAN PENINSULA (FIFTEENTH‒SEVENTEENTH CENTURY) 1 The shaping of the Iberian polities in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. 2 The political constitution of the Iberian monarchies. 3 The Iberian polities within Europe: politics and state building. 4 Religious identities in the Iberian worlds (1500‒1700). 5 Iberia, North Africa, and the Mediterranean. 6 The union between Portugal and the Spanish monarchy (1581– 1640). 7 Iberian society. 8 Women and gender: structures and roles (1400‒1820). 9 The peninsular economies and the impact of globalisation (ca. 1494‒1700). 10 Cultures and communication across the Iberian world (fifteenth–seventeenth centuries). 11 Religious conversion and identities in the Iberian peninsula. 12 Black Africans in the Iberian peninsula (1400–1820). Part 2: EXPANSION AND EMPIRES (FIFTEENTH‒SEVENTEENTH CENTURY) 13 Iberian explorations: the construction of global empires (1450‒1650). 14 Administration and government of the Iberian empires. 15 Patterns of conquest and settlement of the Iberian Americas. 16 Asians in the Iberian world. Tatiana Seijas and ngela Barreto Xavier 17 Amerindians in the Iberian world. 18 Portugal, Spain, and the transatlantic slave trade. 19 Colonial societies in Asia. 20 Europeans, Indians, and Africans in the making of colonial societies. 21 Imperial economies. 22 Artistic experiences in the Iberian world, sixteenth–seventeenth centuries. Part 3: THE EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY IBERIAN WORLD 23 Enlightened politics in Portugal and Spain. 24 Enlightened reformism in Iberian culture and science. 25 Imperial competition in the eighteenth-century Americas. 26 Reform in Spanish and Portuguese America. 27 Social change in the eighteenth-century Iberian world. 28 New imperial economies. Part 4: THE IBERIAN WORLD IN THE AGE OF REVOLUTIONS 29 Protest and resistance against colonial rule in Iberian America. 30 War and revolution in the Iberian Atlantic. 31 Portugal and Spain under the newly established liberal regimes. 32 Independence in Iberian America.
£52.70
Taylor & Francis Artefacts of Encounter
£37.99
Taylor & Francis Gandhis Critics
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£35.14
Cambridge University Press Experiencing the IsraeliPalestinian Conflict
Book SynopsisDetermines the impact of 'peace communication' on fostering structural change. By focusing on Israeli and Palestinian versions of Sesame Street aiming to foster friendships among children, Yael Warshel explores whether such interventions affect audiences, offering recommendations to improve future interventions into political conflict worldwide.Trade Review'A serious achievement and on its way to becoming one of the most important books in this area, both methodologically and theoretically. Yael Warshel commands the literature pertaining to children and media, conflict, and peace communication; her call for evidence-based practices applied to the recommendations she poses will reset the direction of the field.' Don Ellis, University of Hartford'Yael Warshel outlines with clarity and rigor a new research agenda for evaluating peace communication interventions based on an interdisciplinary understanding of the political context of conflict. Her book is at the same time a rich and fascinating up-close account of the audience reception of Israeli-Palestinian Sesame Street.' Daniel Hallin, University of California, San Diego'Experiencing the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict is a serious achievement, and I suspect it is on its way to becoming one of the most methodologically and theoretically important books in this area. Warshel commands the literature pertaining to children and media, conflict, and peace communication; her call for evidence-based practices applied to the recommendations she poses will reset the direction of the field.' Donald Ellis, International Journal of Communication'[T]he book itself is an excellent model of research design and execution. The mixed methodology and transdisciplinary approach combines peace communication with a semiotic, ethnographic, Cultural Studies approach to the process of communication and textual analysis.' Jon Simons, The Communication Review'Sesame Street serves as one of the most well-studied and prominent children's television programs we have witnessed in the United States (US). While the global aspirations of this production may reflect noble intentions, the implementation of this communication intervention illustrates the serious fissures in its reception. Learning from failed attempts will lead not only to improving strategic communication, but also will strengthen our ability to engage in meaningful and impactful social change. Warshel's (Pennsylvania State University) impressive book, Experiencing the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: Children, Peace Communication and Socialization (2021), offers important reflections on the failure of this project to achieve its goals.' Karin Gwinn Wilkins, Critical Studies in Media Communication'This remarkable study poignantly contrasts the high hopes of the Oslo era, the supposed innocence of young children, and the idealized world of Sesame Street with the 'mundane, everyday violence'-physical and structural-of the Second Intifada, all vividly illustrated in a model of Geertzian 'thick description'. […] The book is first and foremost a formidable piece of research. Warshel combines a thorough, methodologically rigorous, and critical evaluation of an ambitious attempt at 'peace communication' with what she calls 'multi-sited ethnographies of violence' (6)-a portrait of everyday life and intergroup relations in the quotidian towns of Alfei Menashe, Umm El-Fahem, and East Barta'a-all narrated through the drawings, photographs, and reflections of Jewish-Israeli, Arab/Palestinian-Israeli, and Palestinian children aged 5-8.' Ned Lazarus, Israel Studies Review'Yael Warshel's scholarly contribution cannot be mistaken.' 'This book provides a model for researchers who want to tackle important issues through applied methods. The author provides a guide for future PeaceComm studies by carefully describing the actions taken by herself, the choices made by producers and viewers, and lessons learned.' 'Studying conflict interventions provides valuable lessons for current/future conflicts …' 'The application spans several years, borders, and methods.' 'This book deserves recognition as among the best the National Communication Association's Applied Communication Division has produced.' 'This is a fascinating book.' 'This unflinching, carefully detailed study shows great intentions and expense yielding none of three intended effects because the viewers … were grounded in the reality of the Palestinian/Israeli separation. The 'two street solution' meant to bring characters on [Palestinian and Israeli] Sesame Street together were unconvincing.' 'I can't think of a more well researched book that details a spectacular failure.' Judging Panel, Sue DeWine Distinguished Scholarly Book AwardTable of ContentsIntroduction: Peace communication and why study Israeli and Palestinian Sesame Street's media intervention model?; Part I. The Production and Encoding of Israeli and Palestinian Sesame Street: Introduction to Part I: Production and encoding methodologies; 1. The Israeli-Palestinian ethno-political nationalist conflict, the Arab-Israeli multi-state conflict and Israeli and Palestinian Sesame Street's disengagement with these conflicts; 2. The modern world, or interstate, system; 3. The encoding process for seasons one and two of Israeli and Palestinian Sesame Street; Part II. Audience Reception of Israeli and Palestinian Sesame Street: Introduction to Part II: Audience reception methodologies; 4. Decodings by Palestinians-in-the-Making; 5. Decodings by Jewish Israelis-in-the-Making; 6. Decodings by Arab/Palestinian Israelis-in-the-Making; Conclusion to Part II: The utility of the series for all three partners to the conflict?; Part III. Situating the Reception of Israeli and Palestinian Sesame Street in Mundane Intractable Conflict Zone Practices: Introduction to Part III: Context analyses and conflict zones methodologies; 7. Pursuing justice: Palestinian children's schematic interpretations of the Israeli army; 8. Pursuing security: Jewish Israeli children's schematic interpretations of Palestinian day laborers; 9. Pursuing equality: Arab/Palestinian Israeli Children's schematic interpretations of constructs of opposing national and civic identities; Part IV. Conclusions and Recommendations to Improve Peace Communication research, (Evidence-based) Practice, and Conflict Intractability Interpretation: Introduction: The best case; 10. Lessons learned and their application to peace communication research, (evidenced-based) practice, and conflict intractability interpretation; 11. How to improve potential media effects and impacts–recommendations for peace communication practitioners; 12. Follow-up study of tween-age former audience members.
£63.75
Cambridge University Press Japans Ocean Borderlands
Book SynopsisDesert islands are the focus of intense geopolitical tensions in East Asia today, but they are also sites of nature conservation. In this global environmental history, Paul Kreitman explores how the politics of conservation and sovereignty have entangled on islands from Hawai'i to the South China Sea, from the mid-nineteenth century till today.
£28.49
Cambridge University Press Chinese Culture and the Chinese Military
£28.49
Cambridge University Press An Early Modern Economy in China
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£31.34
Cambridge University Press Rumor in the Early Chinese Empires
£28.49
Cambridge University Press The History of Famine Relief in China
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£31.34
Cambridge University Press The First Vietnam War
Book SynopsisShawn McHale explores why the communist-led resistance in Vietnam won the anticolonial war against France (194554), except in the south. He shows how broad swaths of Vietnamese people were uneasily united in 1945 under the Viet Minh Resistance banner, all opposing the French attempt to reclaim control of the country. By 1947, resistance unity had shattered and Khmer-Vietnamese ethnic violence had divided the Mekong delta. From this point on, the war in the south turned into an overt civil war wrapped up in a war against France. Based on extensive archival research in four countries and in three languages, this is the first substantive English-language book focused on southern Vietnam''s transition from colonialism to independence.Trade Review'Finally a book on the First Indochina War that goes beyond the standard account of a simple conflict between Ho Chi Minh's Vietnam and the French. The war against the colonizer is there, but so is the one that divided Vietnamese until the bitter end. McHale provides a wonderfully researched and impressively argued story of violence and statecraft in southern Vietnam. It is a major contribution to our understanding of Vietnam.' Christopher Goscha, Université du Québec à Montréal'In this pathbreaking book, Shawn F. McHale overturns much of the conventional historical wisdom about the Indochina War of 1945–1954 in the Mekong Delta. He shows that the war in the delta differed in crucial ways from the better-studied campaigns and battles that took place in central and northern Indochina. Instead of a straightforward narrative of anticolonial struggle and national liberation, The First Vietnam War reveals a complex and fragmented conflict shaped by local rivalries, ethnic violence, and civil warfare.' Edward Miller, Dartmouth College'McHale's innovative study is a welcome departure from the standard scholarship on the First Indochina War. Creatively combining 'bottom up' and 'top down' approaches, McHale demonstrates that local, ethnic, and religious conflicts shaped the war in the Mekong delta as much as larger imperial and nationalist forces.' Nu-Anh Tran, University of Connecticut'This book is ultimately valuable for understanding conflicts other than through ideology and strategy, to enrich itself with its questions dealing with event history, historical anthropology and political philosophy.' Pascal Bourdeaux, MoussonsTable of ContentsIntroduction: Sovereignty, Violence, and Institutional Collapse at the Edge of France's Empire; Part I. Fracture, 1945–1947: 1. A Plural Mekong Delta under Stress; 2. The Southern General Uprising; 3. Priming Upheavals in the Mekong Delta; 4. The Double Fracture of The Mekong Delta; Part II. Disassemblage/Reassemblage, 1947–1953: 5. Empire, Racial Survival, and Race Hatred; 6. Contesting State and Sovereignty; 7. Forced Migrations and Suffering; 8. French Pacification Meets the Vietnamese Resistance; 9. Alternative Trajectories: Seeing Like Parastates, Militias, And Strongmen; Part III. Endgame, 1953–1956: 10. The Twilight of Empire and the Strange Birth of South Vietnam.
£31.49
Cambridge University Press An Urban History of China
Book SynopsisIn this accessible new study, Toby Lincoln offers the first history of Chinese cities from their origins to the present. Despite being an agricultural society for thousands of years, China had an imperial urban civilization. Over the last century, this urban civilization has been transformed into the world''s largest modern urban society. Throughout their long history, Chinese cities have been shaped by interactions with those around the world, and the story of urban China is a crucial part of the history of how the world has become an urban society. Exploring the global connections of Chinese cities, the urban system, urban governance, and daily life alongside introductions to major historical debates and extracts from primary sources, this is essential reading for all those interested in China and in urban history.Trade Review'A well-written and much-needed overview of China's 2000-year urban history connecting local developments and international influences. Exploring the complex intersection of urban system, form and governance, urban culture and daily life, Toby Lincoln's comprehensive study of Chinese cities is an important addition to the growing field of global urban history.' Carola Hein, Delft University of Technology'Lincoln captures China's urban history in rich detail, including changes in conceptions of cities, urban form, and urban life over the centuries. Enlivened with excerpts from fiction and memoirs, this book is both a sweeping historical overview and a great introduction to scholarship on Chinese cities past and present.' Kristin Stapleton, University at Buffalo, SUNY'A good teaching text both reviews and engages with the literature … the author whets the reader's appetite for more, which is exactly what an introductory academic text should do.' Michael Hebbert, The China Quarterly'It is a fascinating read, entertaining a new perspective on the course of Chinese history … Highly recommended.' Q. E. Wang, Choice Connect'Lincoln's textbook is an extremely useful tool … I admire how Lincoln foregrounds the historical legacies of administrative central-ization, economic interconnection, and cultural production in China today while still conveying the many transformations of Chinese urban forms.' Chuck Wooldridge, Journal of Chinese HistoryTable of Contents1. Introduction; 2. The emergence of China's imperial urban civilization (antiquity to 220 CE); 3. Expansion of China's imperial urban civilization to the south (220–755); 4. The Tang-Song transition and its effects on China's imperial urban civilization (907–1402); 5. The flowering of Chinese imperial urban civilization (1402–1799); 6. The seeds of urban modernity (1800–1895); 7. Urban modernity in Republican China (1895–1949); 8. The Maoist period (1949–1976); 9. The Reform Era and the present; 10. Conclusion.
£23.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC A Brief History of Ancient China
Book SynopsisEdward L Shaughnessy is Lorraine J. and Herrlee G. Creel Distinguished Service Professor in Early Chinese Studies, and Director of Graduate Studies, East Asian Languages and Civilizations at the University of Chicago, USA.Trade ReviewThe author’s review of archaeological finds and foundational texts, combined with the zestiness of Chinese accounts of heroes and villains and valuable topical essays on things like Music, Law and Bronzes makes for a fresh and fun-to-read survey of Early China that succeeds in capturing the flavor of Chinese historical sensibilities. * Gregory Rohlf, Professor, University of the Pacific, USA *Table of ContentsList of Figures List of Maps List of Tables Preface Basic Annals 1. Basic Annals of Yao and Shun 2. Basic Annals of Xia 3. Basic Annals of Shang 4. Basic Annals of Zhou 5. Basic Annals of Qin Maps and Tables 6. Topographical Map of China 7. Map of Yu the Great’s Nine Regions 8. Maps of the Shang,Western Zhou, Springs and Autumns and Warring States Periods 9. Map of Major Archaeological Sites of Ancient China 10. Genealogies and Chronologies of Rulers of Xia, Shang and Western Zhou 11. Chronologies of Rulers of Major States of the Springs and Autumns Period 12. Chronologies of Rulers of Major States of the Warring States Period 13. Table of Historically Important Non-Rulers in Ancient China Essays 14. Essay on the Heavens 15. Essay on the Earth 16. Essay on Ritual 17. Essay on Warfare 18. Essay on Government 19. Essay on Law 20. Essay on Music 21. Essay on Bronze 22. Essay on Writing 23. Essay on Literature Hereditary Houses 24. Hereditary House of Lu 25. Hereditary House of Yan 26. Hereditary House of Qi 27. Hereditary House of Jin 28. Hereditary House of Wei 29. Hereditary House of Zhao 30. Hereditary House of Han 31. Hereditary House of Chu 32. Hereditary House of Zeng 33. Hereditary Houses of Wu and Yue 34. Hereditary Houses of the Eastern Peoples 35. Hereditary Houses of the Western Peoples Biographies 36. Biographies of Yi Yin and Fu Yue 37. Biography of Fu Hao 38. Biographies of Luzi Sheng and the Three Humane Men of Shang 39. Biography of Moufu, Duke of Zhai 40. Biography of Supervisor of the Horse Lu, the Elder of Jing 41. Biographies of Yin Jifu 42. Biography of Bao Si 43. Biographies of Li Ji and Mu Jiang 44. Biography of Ding Jiang 45. Biography of Maestro Kuang 46. Biography of Zi Chan 47. Biography of Wu Zixu 48. Biography of Confucius 49. Biographies of Confucius’s Disciples 50. Biographies of Mencius and Xunzi 51. Biographies of Laozi and Zhuangzi 52. Biographies of Sun Wu and Sun Bin 53. Biography of Shang Yang 54. Biography of Shao Tuo 55. Biography of Bian Que 56. Biographies of Qu Yuan and Song Xing 57. Biography of Xi 58. Biographies of Han Fei and Li Si 59. Biographies of Chen She and Wu Guang 60. Author’s Postface
£27.54
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Southern Tour
Book SynopsisJonathan Chatwin is a non-fiction writer and journalist. His work has appeared in CNN, the South China Morning Post and the BBC. He is the author of Long Peace Street: A Walk in Modern China (MUP, 2019) and Anywhere Out of the World: The Work of Bruce Chatwin (MUP, 2012).
£20.89
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Japanese Fighting Heroes
Book SynopsisJapanese mythology is filled with stories of larger-than-life characters that shaped thelandscape of Japan. They are the folk heroes who slayed monsters, fought in epic battles andreflected the most complicated emotions of the people who created them.Through a mix of essays, short stories and anecdotes, Japanese Fighting Heroes follows thelives of samurai, warriors, outliers and iconoclasts who forged their own paths.Legendary fighters like the demon-killing Minamoto no Yorimitsu, philosophising samuraiMiyamoto Musashi, and the One-Eyed Dragon Date Masamune.Creative heroes like the father of Japanese short stories Ryunosuke Akutagawa, the immortalpoet Ono no Komachi, the hilarious Sei Shonagon and her insight into human nature.Trailblazers who broke down barriers like the feminist Hiratsuka Raicho, the statesmanFukuzawa Yukichi, the photographic genius Hiroshi Hamaya.These Japanese folk heroes led fascinating lives that provide insight into our own through theprinciples and practices t
£18.70
John Murray Press The Mongol Storm
Book Synopsis''Brain-stretching . . . pulsating . . . irresistable'' The Sunday Times''Deeply researched and elegantly written - essential reading'' Dan Jones''Erudite, often thrilling and much-needed'' Daily TelegraphHow the Mongol invasions of the Near East reshaped the balance of world power in the Middle Ages.For centuries, the Crusades have been central to the story of the medieval Near East, but these religious wars are only part of the region''s complex history. As The Mongol Storm reveals, during the same era the Near East was utterly remade by another series of wars: the Mongol invasions. In a single generation, the Mongols conquered vast swaths of the Near East and upended the region''s geopolitics. Amid the chaos of the Mongol onslaught, long-standing powers such as the Byzantines, the Seljuk Turks, and the crusaders struggled to survive, while new players such as the Ottomans arose to fight back. The Mongol conquestTrade ReviewDeeply researched and elegantly written - essential reading -- Dan JonesErudite, often thrilling and much-needed -- Daily TelegraphBrain-stretching . . . pulsating . . . irresistable . . . A reminder that the best history writing is eminently readable -- The Sunday TimesRevelatory, lively and stocked with colourful personalities -- Literary ReviewAn unusual blend of serious scholarship with a narrative drive as galloping as the ferocious Mongol cavalry whose repeated battlefield triumphs Nicholas Morton recreates with relish -- The Sunday TimesThe most exciting study of the Mongols and their encounters with the peoples of the Near East I have ever read -- William Chester Jordan, Princeton UniversityThis expert study casts the Middle Ages in a new light -- Publishers WeeklyFor anyone who loves history, especially with military and diplomatic focuses -- Library Journal
£12.34
Richfield and Barr Publishing Limited My Families and Other Samurai
Book SynopsisIn this deeply researched, richly textured and often moving family history, Haruko Fukuda gives for western readers a series of unique insights into the Japan of the last century and a half. David KynastonJapan's lordly samurai thought money beneath them, but Haruko thought for herself. Coming to England, she got herself into Cambridge (to read History) and went on to a dazzling career in international finance and then public service. Her book is fascinating, illuminating and touching. Christopher FildesA vivid, personal and revealing excavation of the forgotten worlds of 20th-century Japan In My Families and Other Samurai, Haruko Fukuda weaves together intricate threads of Japan's modern history, offering a glimpse into the lives of members of her family the last of the samurai as they deal with momentous change. With meticulous rsearch and insightful analysis, Fukuda guides us through the pages of history, unearthing hidden narratives, revealing a remarkable interplay of tradition and progress, and shedding light on the untold stories of Japan's elite.
£24.00
Little, Brown Book Group The New India
Book SynopsisThe New India is the unforgettable account of the struggle between modern forces and ancient ideas to shape the young country''s destiny. It reveals a picture of a nation on the precipice of dramatic change.''Remarkable... fascinating... brilliant'' GuardianBased on six years of detailed research and on-the-ground reporting, the book builds - authoritatively, vividly, indelibly - to become the story of post-colonial India. Using hundreds of interviews, and letters, diary entries, Partition-era police reports, and an astonishing range of sources, Bhatia shows how history plays a recurring role in the present: in politics, in the minds of citizens, in notions of justice and corruption.Bhatia examines the connections between the Delhi riots of 2020 and the emergence of nineteenth-century revolutionary secret societies, the rise of Hindu nationalism, whose early advocates drew lessons from Hitler and Mussolini, the political use
£21.25
Rowman & Littlefield Ming China 13681644
Book SynopsisThis engaging, deeply informed book provides the first concise history of one of China''s most important eras. Leading scholar John W. Dardess offers a thematically organized political, social, and economic exploration of China from 1368 to 1644. He examines how the Ming dynasty was able to endure for 276 years, illuminating Ming foreign relations and border control, the lives and careers of its sixteen emperors, its system of governance and the kinds of people who served it, its great class of literati, and finally the mass outlawry that, in unhappy conjunction with the Manchu invasions from outside, ended the once-mighty dynasty in the mid-seventeenth century. The Ming witnessed the beginning of China''s contact with the West, and its story will fascinate all readers interested in global as well as Asian history.Trade ReviewDardess’s achievement is that he has condensed the whole story into a neat book under 150 pages long. . . . Dardess’s focus on why the Ming dynasty endured, as opposed to why it failed, is both refreshing and necessary. . . . Ming China will inspire the student and challenge the specialist and is thus a very positive contribution. * Journal of Asian Studies *In this deft, elegant overview of the Ming Dynasty, Dardess (Univ. of Kansas), one of the most eminent living scholars of the period, effortlessly compresses over two and a half centuries of history into a mere 148 pages of text, including notes for further reading. Five chapters cover the Ming empire from its frontiers to its center, and from the apex of power down to the level of bandits and outlaws. Dardess argues that the dynasty was a powerful and enduring polity whose culture was shaped by the chronic steppe threat on its northern border and the efforts of the literati at the center of society to adapt to changing economic and political realities. . . . The single best introduction to the Ming Dynasty available. An excellent starting point for those interested in the period. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. * CHOICE *An entirely original and fresh recounting of Ming history. The genius of the work is in its innovative organization, which economically structures the story into five lively chapters that build logically one upon the other to move vertically down the strata of Ming society while developing a chronological narrative within each chapter. This much-needed book will appeal both to general readers and to students of Chinese history and culture. -- Edward L. Farmer, University of MinnesotaTable of ContentsChapter 1: Frontiers Chapter 2: Emperors Chapter 3: Governance Chapter 4: Literati Chapter 5: Outlaws Further Reading
£86.70
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC The Promise
Book SynopsisA spellbinding and magical narrative, this is the story of modern China through the women who lived through it.At the start of the twentieth century in China, the Hans were married in an elaborate ceremony before they were even born. They went on to have nine children and chose colours portrayed in some of their favourite poems as nicknames for them Red, Cyan, Orange, Yellow, Green, Green Tangerine, Purple, Blue and Rainbow. Fate, and the sweep of twentieth-century history, would later divide them.Xinran begins with the magic and tragedy of one young couple''s wedding night in 1949, and goes on to tell personal experiences of loss, grief and hardship through China''s extraordinary century. In doing so she tells a bigger story how traditional Chinese values have been slowly eroded by the tide of modernity and how their outlooks on love, and the choices they''ve made in life, have been all been affected by the great upheavals of Chinese history.Trade ReviewA brilliant storyteller. -- Hilary SpurlingThis book cracks the code of love, loneliness, and belonging in contemporary China. -- Xiaolu Guo, author of 'Once Upon a Time in the East'Reporting on four generations of one Chinese family and their diverging paths, Xinran shows how the country’s social norms have changed through politics and the rise of modernity. * New York Times *Xinran Xue is a gifted storyteller and The Promise reads like an unputdownable novel. William Spence’s translation from Chinese into English cannot be over-praised. * Washington Book Review *‘An absorbing, often startling, always persuasive exploration of contemporary China.’ -- Hilary Spurling on 'Buy Me The Sky' * The Spectator *[A] graceful work that restores a lost generation to history. * Kirkus Review *One would have to have a heart of stone not to be moved. * The Economist on 'Message from an Unknown Chinese Mother' *Groundbreaking… This intimate record reads like an act of defiance, and the unvarnished prose allows each story to stand as testimony. * The New Yorker on 'The Good Women of China' *‘Right here we see the red lines that many Chinese still draw for themselves in public discourse, or even privately, the boundaries they dare not cross even today. No other style of storytelling could have exhibited them with more clarity or greater rawness.’ -- Oliver August on 'China Witness' * THE TIMES *Exploring love and loss in modern China is a big job but it is in simplifying the overwhelming that Xinran excels. And in the introduction to this compelling and moving book, the author clarifies just how she has managed the task...In these carefully told vignettes, Xinran takes the reader through a century of tumult and change in China, her writing beautifully reflecting the intimate and honest voices of the women whose stories of love she tells. * The Weekend Australian *'Xinran writes with a fine balance of economy, compassion and wisdom, and manages to be at once proud, critical, forward-looking, nostalgic, sad, angry and hopeful.’ * The New Statesman *Table of ContentsPromises and ‘talking love’: my inspirations for this book Map of China Key Dates Introduction Note on the Text Part I. A Love Coloured by Wars and Political Movements First sister, Red Part II. A Communist Family Tree Second sister, Green Part III. A Bird’s Love during the Cultural Revolution Green’s daughter, Crane Part IV. Diverse ‘Lovers’ The 3D Generation: Lili, Yoyo, Wuhen Afterword: In and Out the Door of Life Author’s Heartfelt Thanks
£14.42
Hodder Education My Revision Notes Edexcel ASAlevel History Maos
Book SynopsisExam Board: EdexcelLevel: AS/A-levelSubject: HistoryFirst Teaching: September 2015First Exam: June 2016Target success in Edexcel AS/A-level History with this proven formula for effective, structured revision; key content coverage is combined with exam preparation activities and exam-style questions to create a revision guide that students can rely on to review, strengthen and test their knowledge.- Enables students to plan and manage a successful revision programme using the topic-by-topic planner- Consolidates knowledge with clear and focused content coverage, organised into easy-to-revise chunks- Encourages active revision by closely combining historical content with related activities- Helps students build, practise and enhance their exam skills as they progress through activities set at three different levels- Improves exam technique through exam-style questions with sample
£13.33
Little, Brown Book Group Fortunes Bazaar
Book SynopsisA timely, well-researched, and vibrant new history of Hong Kong that reveals the untold stories of the diverse peoples who have made it a multicultural world metropolis-and whose freedoms are endangered today.Hong Kong has always been many cities to many people: a seaport, a gateway to an empire, a place where fortunes can be dramatically made or lost, a place to disappear and reinvent oneself, and a mixing pot of diverse populations from literally everywhere around the globe. A British Crown Colony for 155 years, Hong Kong is now ruled by the Chinese Communist Party who continues to threaten its democracy and put its rich legacy at risk. Here, renowned journalist Vaudine England delves into Hong Kong''s complex history and its people-diverse, multi-cultural, cosmopolitan-who have made this one-time fishing village into the world port city it is today.Rather than a traditional history describing a town led by British Governors or a mere offshoot of a collapsinTrade ReviewAs a history of Hongkong, not just as a British colony, or an exotic Chinese enclave, but as a cosmopolitan city of many creeds and races, Asian and European, Vaudine England's book is unsurpassed. Her take on the so-called Eurasians, who have played such a large part in Hongkong's history, is fresh and essential to a better understanding of this unique place -- Ian BurumaAt last: a lively and carefully researched page turner about the individuals and social forces that have made Hong Kong the dynamic (and quirky) place it is -- Adi Ignatius, former Wall Street Journal Bureau Chief in BeijingVivid, atmospheric, packed with brilliant story-telling, Vaudine England brings to life the boiling pot of race, culture and ambition that made Hong Kong one of the world's great cities. Within its compelling read, Fortune's Bazaar boldly explodes the myth that Hong Kong is 'just another Chinese city.' Not at all, England gives us the story of the visionary, deal-making, itinerant Eurasian elite who created this unique, international place that is Hong Kong -- Humphrey Hawksley, former BBC Beijing, Hong Kong and Asia CorrespondentIf you love Hong Kong and have lost her, as have I, Vaudine England's marvellous account of the "in-between people," who made it the remarkable place it was, will fill you with wonder, understanding and a sadness for a place - and an idea - that no longer exists -- Richard Hornik, former TIME bureau chief in Beijing and Hong KongIn Fortune's Bazaar, Vaudine England rejects a tale-of-two-cities approach to the history of Hong Kong's colonization and this is what makes it so illuminating... [Fortune's Bazaar] offers lively, confounding and sometimes even inspiring stories about Eurasians and others, show[ing] that cities are constructed not from zero-sum games and political theory, but from generations of human interactions that defy us-and-them formulas * Thomas Dyja, New York Times Book Review *To call a history 'rollicking' may indicate that it isn't serious, but Fortune's Bazaar is both. Vaudine England's well-written take on the historical record is likely to delight anyone who loves Hong Kong * Peter Gordon, Asian Review of Books *In Fortune's Bazaar, Vaudine England examines [Hong Kongers], these 'in-between people,' as she calls them, and their often overlooked role in the development of Hong Kong into a cosmopolitan, world-class city. [With] impressive research, Fortune's Bazaar is less a straightforward narrative than a history told through the stories of Eurasians and other mixed-culture residents. The reader will be rewarded with an enhanced understanding of what it means to be a Hong Konger * Melanie Kirkpatrick, Wall Street Journal *A vivid, entertaining guide, rich in anecdote and understanding for an early globalised world thathas gone * Michael Sheridan, Sunday Times *
£21.25
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Imphal 1944
Book SynopsisIn March 1944, the Japanese Fifteenth Army launched an offensive into India from Burma. Named U Go, its main objective was the capture of the town of Imphal, which provided the easiest route between India and Burma. Whoever controlled it, controlled access between the two countries. Facing off against the Japanese was the British Fourteenth Army and its Imphal-based 4 Corps. For the next four months, over 200,000 men clashed in the hills and valley of Manipur in what has since been described as one of the greatest battles of World War II.Although numbers vary, it is estimated that some 30,000 Japanese soldiers died and 23,000 were injured at ImphalKohima in 1944 due to fighting, disease and in the retreat back to Burma. It remains the largest defeat on land ever for the Japanese Army. With fully commissioned artwork and maps, this is the complete story of the turning point in the Burma campaign in World War II.
£14.39
Duke University Press The Stone and the Wireless
Book SynopsisIn the final decades of the Manchu Qing dynasty in China, technologies such as the phonograph, telephone, telegraph, and photography were both new and foreign. In The Stone and the Wireless Shaoling Ma analyzes diplomatic diaries, early science fiction, feminist poetry, photography, telegrams, and other archival texts, and shows how writers, intellectuals, reformers, and revolutionaries theorized what media does despite lacking a vocabulary to do so. Media defines the dynamics between technologies and their social or cultural forms, between devices or communicative processes and their representations in texts and images. More than simply reexamining late Qing China''s political upheavals and modernizing energies through the lens of media, Ma shows that a new culture of mediation was helping to shape the very distinctions between politics, gender dynamics, economics, and science and technology. Ma contends that mediation lies not only at the heart of Chinese media history but of Trade Review“The beauty of Shaoling Ma's inspiring and provocative argument is that it allows for a reconsideration of late Qing culture through a new prism and for the expansion of mediality beyond the familiar confines of Western culture. Offering fresh readings and giving new life to key texts in modern Chinese history and literature, Ma makes an intervention that will force the field of Chinese studies to reassess its methodology and fundamental assumptions.” -- Yomi Braester, author of * Painting the City Red: Chinese Cinema and the Urban Contract *“From late Qing texts and media studies to Marxist criticism and affect theory, The Stone and the Wireless combines different archives, discourses, and theoretical registers in new and exciting ways. This innovative, rich, and intellectually engaging work will appeal to those in Chinese studies and media studies more broadly.” -- Andrea Bachner, author of * The Mark of Theory: Inscriptive Figures, Poststructuralist Prehistories *"Scholars and graduate students interested in global media cultures and media theory will find The Stone and the Wireless a valuable addition to the North American and Western European canon of media theory. This book not only challenges the predominant emphasis on forms and objects, but also constructs a complex web of mediation through its narrative. Chinese notions, texts, and historical contexts serve as the subjects of discussion, not the backdrop. For scholars of world literature, comparative literature, and science fiction, the book offers close readings of untranslated and understudied sources." -- Xuenan Cao * Modern Chinese Literature and Culture *"Connecting history, theory, and area studies, The Stone and the Wireless makes contributions to many fields, including media studies, literary criticism, and cultural studies. It introduces new sources to the study of media history and science fiction history in China. It also provides valuable insights and fresh materials to the global history of technology by investigating the circulation of technical knowledge between new areas and regions." -- Yue Zhao * H-Sci-Med-Tech, H-Net Reviews *"The Stone and the Wireless . . . sets an important example for readership in and beyond the China field that sources such as Guo’s diplomatic diaries and newspaper photojournalism have immense interdisciplinary potential. Using media theory methods, these objects of historical interest can exist within area-specific history and form part of generative, ongoing debates surrounding media and media technology." -- Alina Scotti * Technology and Culture *"Scholars in gender studies and labor history will also be inspired by its discussion of gendered subjectivity and the working masses in Chinese literature. Since our current era is marked by the widespread popularity and significant influence of Artificial Intelligence, general readers will find the debates surrounding the capacity of machines to replicate human cognition and language during the late Qing era very relevant as well." -- Yu Liu * Asian Ethnicity *"Ma’s book is a valuable addition to the growing literature on media in Chinese history. Her focus on the late Qing period, instead of the republican era, is especially worthy of praise. The Stone and the Wireless opens an intellectual space to think about mediation and ponder its strengths and weaknesses as a method. It will be an essential read for Chinese media studies going forward." -- Ulug Kuzuoglu * Cultural Politics *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Introduction. The Forms of Media 1 Part I. Jl | Recordings 1. Guo Songtao's Phonograph: The Politics and Aesthetics of Real and Imagined Media 37 2. Stone, Copy, Medium: "Tidbits of Writing" and "Official Documents" in New Story of the Stone (1905–1906) 74 Part II. Chuan/Zhuan | Transmissions 3. Lyrical Media: Technology, Sentimentality, and Bad Models of the Feeling Woman 111 Part III. Tong | Interconnectivity 4. 1900: Infrastructural Emergencies of Telegraphic Proportions 149 5. A Medium to End All Media: "New Tales of Mr. Braggadocio" and the Social Brain of Industry and Intellect 181 Conclusion: Stone, Woman, Wireless 207 Notes 219 Bibliography 261 Index 285
£19.54
Duke University Press Climatic Media
Book SynopsisIn Climatic Media, Yuriko Furuhata traces climate engineering from the early twentieth century to the present, emphasizing the legacies of Japan’s empire building and its Cold War alliance with the United States. Furuhata boldly expands the scope of media studies to consider technologies that chemically “condition” Earth’s atmosphere and socially “condition” the conduct of people, focusing on the attempts to monitor and modify indoor and outdoor atmospheres by Japanese scientists, technicians, architects, and artists in conjunction with their American counterparts. She charts the geopolitical contexts of what she calls climatic media by examining a range of technologies such as cloud seeding and artificial snowflakes, digital computing used for weather forecasting and weather control, cybernetics for urban planning and policing, Nakaya Fujiko’s fog sculpture, and the architectural experiments of Tange Lab and the Metabolists, who Trade Review“Climatic Media is a groundbreaking project that will have far-reaching resonances and implications across the humanities and social sciences. Given its critical rigor, deeply engaging analysis, and the wide-ranging readership it forges, Climatic Media is no doubt one of the most exciting books to mark this new decade. This is a field-changing work and a fascinating and extremely rewarding read.” -- Weihong Bao, author of * Fiery Cinema: The Emergence of an Affective Medium in China, 1915–1945 *“Yuriko Furuhata’s Climatic Media is a timely, vital, and urgent book. At a moment of extreme disaster speculation and technophilic ambitions to re-engineer both ourselves and our planet’s climate, this book offers both critique and inspiration. Tracing an alternative Japanese genealogy of climate control, Furuhata convincingly demonstrates how conditioning the climate and conditioning ourselves are joint projects. In exposing the militarized, imperial, and contested epistemologies that construct our contemporary ideas of ecology, she also opens a route by which we might envision and design alternative forms of environmental management, forms that might be more equitable, noncolonial, and diverse.” -- Orit Halpern, author of * Beautiful Data: A History of Vision and Reason since 1945 *“I came away with a newfound appreciation for the hidden nature of atmospheric management that we see but do not see every day. . . . The book is itself a fascinating contribution to science and technology studies, history of science and technology, and cultural and media theory literature, and offers a new way of imagining Japanese history.” -- Fiona C. Williamson * H-Sci-Med-Tech, H-Net Reviews *“Climatic Media sits at the intersection of media studies and the history of science and technology. Furuhata taps into a current trend by looking at climate as media. Highly Recommended.” -- P. L. Kantor * Choice *“[Climatic Media] is an important contribution to our understanding of many aspects of Japanese epistemic communities, the US-Japan alliance, and our current predicament of global warming and potential, man-made solutions. Hopefully, it will help our responses become more thoughtful.” -- Daniel P. Aldrich * Pacific Affairs *“It is the intersection of histories of technology, environmental mediation, and their geopolitical stakes that makes Furuhata’s book so interesting. It taps into such a crucial topic of discussion that it is sure to be widely read and referenced in and outside media studies.” -- Jussi Parikka * Leonardo *“[Furuhata] makes a remarkable contribution to the histories of climate in East Asia —where architecture, weather, and digital computing are reinforced as mutually interdependent discourses that continue to evolve and transform how we think about climate control.” -- Jennifer Ferng * Leonardo *“Those interested in Japanese media studies, theories of elemental/environmental media, and/or transpacific Cold War history will find much to celebrate in Climatic Media. . . . It is an important book that points the way toward a more critically minded mode of environmental scholarship that demonstrates the potentials of adopting a transpacific approach to the tracing of (often surprising) media genealogies.” -- Jon L. Pitt * Journal of Asian Studies *“Climatic Media marvels in its connections. . . . Furuhata’s bid to define climatic media and to establish the ecological and transpacific geopolitical feedback loops that ‘undergird atmospheric control as forms of air conditioning and social conditioning’ becomes a refreshing and necessary endeavor.” -- Laura Beltz Imaoka * Film Quarterly *“A timely and urgent work in our doom-laden age of climate change, [Climatic Media] encompasses not only the air-conditioning of discrete spaces and rooms but also that of climate-controlled shelters and atmospheric control on a geographic scale. . . . With ample original materials and thorough research, particularly the transpacific historical analysis, it gives several clear commentaries on the continuity of science-based technology between the Japanese imperial era and the postwar context.” -- Togo Tsukahara * Technology and Culture *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments vii Introduction 1 1. Outdoor Weather: Artificial Fog and Weather Control 25 2. Indoor Weather: Air-Conditioning and Future Forecasting 48 3. To the Greenhouse: Weatherproof Architecture as Climatic Media 80 4. Spaceship Earth: Plastics and the Ecological Dilemma of Metabolist Architecture 104 5. Cloud Control: Tear Gas, Cybernetics, and Networked Surveillance 133 Conclusion: Explicating the Backgrounds 166 Notes 177 Bibliography 215 Index 237
£19.94
Duke University Press Plantation Worlds
Book Synopsis
£999.99
John Wiley and Sons Ltd Japan
Book SynopsisJapan, anchored by its traditions, transformed by American post-war Occupation, and globally recognized for its technological innovations, manufacturing prowess, and pop culture, faces powerful challenges from within and without. How Japan chooses to handle these problems and opportunities will determine its future for decades to come. In this book, Jeff Kingston – one of the most lucid analysts of Japan today – takes readers on a fascinating journey through this country's contemporary history, exploring the key developments and forces, both at home and abroad, that are shaping Japan in the twenty-first century. Whether Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s transformative agenda of “Abenomics” and “proactive pacifism” toward a rising China and a belligerent North Korea can set Japan on the path to greater prosperity and security remains to be seen. But having won a third term as president of the Liberal Democratic Party in 2018, Japan’s ongoing transformation is very much in Abe’s hands.Trade Review“There is no better way to understand where this always intriguing, vitally important, and often pioneering country is heading than to read this book.”Bill Emmott, Chairman, Japan Society of the UK and author of The Fate of the West. “Much of the world seems to have forgotten Japan, being mesmerized by the spectacular rise of China. Jeff Kingston’s informative and remarkably entertaining book reminds us that, despite its many problems, Japan still matters deeply, rebounding in many fields in unexpected ways.”Arthur Stockwin, Nissan Institute of Japanese Studies, Oxford"Scholar Jeff Kingston has penned a new 'compact and lively book' looking at Japan in the 21st century. Japan promises to be a must-read for anyone concerned about the future of this country."The Japan Times ‘A concise, highly readable overview of Japan’s political evolution from 1945 to the present’ The Japan Times Table of ContentsMap Chapter 1 Bouncing Back? Chapter 2 Japan, Inc. Chapter 3 American Alliance Chapter 4 Lost Decades and Disasters Chapter 5 Dissent Chapter 6 Abe's Japan Further Reading Notes
£11.69
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Battle for Laos: Vietnam's Proxy War,
Book SynopsisBy 1959 the newly independent Kingdom of Laos was being transformed into a Cold War battleground for global superpower competition, having been born out of the chaos following the French military defeat and withdrawal from Indochina in 1954. The country was soon engulfed in a rapidly evolving civil war as rival forces jockeyed for power and swelling foreign intervention further fueled the fighting. Adding even more fuel to the fire, "neutral" Laos's geographic entanglement in the intensifying war in neighboring South Vietnam deepened in the early 1960s as Hanoi's reliance on the Ho Chi Minh Trail for moving men and material through the southern Laotian panhandle grew exponentially and became a priority target of American interdiction efforts. For almost twenty years, the fighting between the Western-supported Royal Lao government and the communist-supported Pathet Lao would rage across the plains, jungles, and mountaintops largely unseen by most of the world in this so-called "secret war." Thousands on each side would die and many more would be displaced as the conflict on the ground ebbed and flowed from season to season and year to year. And in the skies above, American and Royal Laotian aircraft would rain down their deadly payloads, decimating large swaths of the countryside in pursuit of victory. Nearly 3 million tons of bombs would be dropped on Laotian territory between 1965 and 1973, leaving a deadly legacy of unexploded ordnance that lingers to this day. Thus, the battle for Laos is the story of entire communities and generations caught up in a war seemingly without end, one that pitted competing foreign interests and their proxies against each other, and one that was forever tied to Washington's pursuit of victory in Vietnam.
£13.49
PublicAffairs,U.S. Massacre in the Clouds
Book SynopsisIn this “forensic, unflinching, devastating work of historical recovery” (Sathnam Sanghera), Bud Dajo—an American atrocity bigger than Wounded Knee or My Lai, yet today largely forgotten—is revealed, thanks to the rediscovery of a single photograph. In March 1906, American soldiers on the island of Jolo in the southern Philippines surrounded and killed 1000 local men, women, and children, known as Moros, on top of an extinct volcano. The so-called ‘Battle of Bud Dajo’ was hailed as a triumph over an implacable band of dangerous savages, a “brilliant feat of arms” according to President Theodore Roosevelt. Some contemporaries, including W.E.B. Du Bois and Mark Twain, saw the massacre for what it was, but they were the exception and the U.S. military authorities successfully managed to bury the story. Despite the fact that the slaughter of Moros had been captured on camera, the memory of the massacre soon disappear
£25.20
Stone Bridge Press Illusory Dwellings
Book SynopsisEssays on the nature, production, and presentation of art, craft, and architecture in Japan, inspired by the author’s experiences in Kyoto. Illusory Dwellings is not a guide concerning what to see in Kyoto, but a philosophical meditation on how to travel and observe in this capital of traditional Japanese art. Both intimate and scholarly, the book accompanies the reader on visits to famed gardens like Ryōan-ji, investigates the complex symbolism of the tea ceremony and the important role of the tea room, reveals the beauty of Japanese cuisine, and delves into the world of contemporary ceramics. It also provides context for the tensions and harmony between traditional and modern forms of art and craft in Kyoto and throughout Japan, and contrasts these with how they are received at home versus their treatment by Western museums in modernist contexts. Altogether this is an er
£16.14
Bellwether Media Japan
Book Synopsis
£12.34
Pogo Books Philippines
Book Synopsis
£8.99
Bellwether Media The Great Wall of China
Book Synopsis
£12.34
Pogo Books/Jump! Pakistan
Book Synopsis
£8.99
Reaktion Books A History of Myanmar Since Ancient Times
Book SynopsisIn A History of Myanmar since Ancient Times, Michael Aung-Thwin and Maitrii Aung-Thwin take us from the sacred stupas of the plains of Pagan to the grand, colonial-era British mansions, revealing the storied past and rich culture of this country. The book traces the traditions and transformations of Myanmar's communities over nearly three millennia, from the relics of its Neolithic civilization to the splendors of its pre-colonial kingdoms, its encounters with British colonialism and the struggles for the republic that followed the end of the Second World War. The authors also consider the complexities of present-day life in Myanmar and examine the key political events and debates of the last 25 years that have brought the world's attention to the country. By exploring current developments within the broader patterns of Myanmar's history, culture and society, the book provides a nuanced perspective on the issues and questions surrounding Myanmar's future. This updated edition considers the changes that have taken place since the elections of 2010, the reforms that the civilian government introduced and the ramifications of the country's new international status. It also assesses the implications of the 2012 by-elections, the ensuing political dynamics among various stakeholders and the continuing socio-economic challenges facing Myanmar in the twenty-first century. The most comprehensive history of Myanmar ever published in the English language, this book makes a significant contribution to our understanding of Southeast Asian history and will surprise, challenge and inform in equal measure.Trade Review'This book is a bold and thought-provoking work that should be read by all serious students of Myanmar. It offers a major reinterpretation of Myanmar history, in part by relating broad historical trends to more recent developments.' - Dr Andrew Selth, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 'This new book by two well-known historians provides a very good introduction to Myanmar's history from the premodern period to the present. The book is written in an engaging style ... But it is not just a superficial recounting of events. The authors examine longstanding discussions in academic circles about Myanmar's history, exploring, for example, the role of Buddhism, the reasons behind the rise and fall of its royal dynasties, and the impact of colonization and WWII on the country. Highly recommended.' - Choice 'An original research-based history of Myanmar through the centuries is long overdue. A History of Myanmar since Ancient Times is an essential volume for anyone seeking to understand the warp and woof of that little-known society today. Michael and Maitrii Aung-Thwin have gone back to original sources to explain the structure of Myanmar's history in a readable, but highly informed and original single volume.' - Robert H. Taylor, author of The State in Myanmar 'A strongly-argued book with a clearly stated perspective. This is a stimulating, often pugnacious reading of the history of Myanmar.' - Professor Ian Brown, Department of History, School of Oriental and African Studies
£23.75
Fonthill Media Ltd Japan at War 1931-45: As the Cherry Blossom Falls
Book SynopsisThis fascinating history, recounted from both the American and Japanese perspectives, follows the course of the Empire of the Sun's ultimately unequal struggle against the great allied powers. Drawing on archive material, this new history provides the reader with piercing strategic and political insights which debunk many of the enduring myths which encompass Japan's apocalyptic drive for hegemony in Southeast Asia. Why did Japan invade China? Was war with America and the British Empire inevitable? Why was the Japanese mobile fleet defeated so decisively at Midway? Why did the Japanese continue fighting when defeat was inevitable? Was Emperor Hirohito merely a puppet of the militarists? Why did the Japanese people acquiesce in the occupation of their homeland? Whilst unsparing in its treatment of Japan's ultimate culpability for unleashing the Second World War, 'Japan at War 1931-1945' is an objective appraisal of the tragedy that engulfed much of the territories under Japanese control, and eventually Japan itself.
£17.09
Vintage Publishing Himalaya: A Human History
Book Synopsis'Magnificent ... this book is unlikely to be surpassed' TelegraphThis is the first major history of the Himalaya: an epic story of peoples, cultures and adventures among the world's highest mountains.SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2020 DUFF COOPER PRIZEAn epic story of peoples, cultures and adventures among the world's highest mountains: here Jesuit missionaries exchanged technologies with Tibetan Lamas, Mongol Khans employed Nepali craftsmen, Armenian merchants exchanged musk and gold with Mughals.Featuring scholars and tyrants, bandits and CIA agents, go-betweens and revolutionaries, Himalaya is a panoramic, character-driven history on the grandest but also the most human scale, by far the most comprehensive yet written, encompassing geology and genetics, botany and art, and bursting with stories of courage and resourcefulness.'Magisterial' The Times'His observations are sharp...his writing glows' New York Review of BooksSHORTLISTED FOR THE 2021 BOARDMAN TASKER AWARD FOR MOUNTAIN LITERATURETrade ReviewMagnificent ... a far-reaching, compendious and elegantly turned examination of a region and its peoples, this book is unlikely to be surpassed * Telegraph *A magisterial account of the complex human history of the greatest mountains on Earth ... fascinating ... scrupulously and movingly detail[ed] ... Douglas weaves a far richer tapestry, showing how this is a sacred landscape influenced by very worldly concerns * The Times *A panoramic history of the region ... Such a complex range of subjects is not easy to press into a coherent narrative ... Douglas ... does so with extraordinary aplomb ... rigorous and informative ... highly readable ... never lacking freshness and rich in compelling detail * Literary Review *A scholarly yet entertaining synthesis of hundreds of years of history ... [Douglas] portrays not only nuns and monks but also courtesans, mountaineers, kings, horse-traders, tea merchants, spies, architects, botanists, soldiers and politicians from Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Sikkim, China and India - as well as from Britain, the British Raj, American, Russia and continental Europe ... a labour of love twenty-five years in the making * Financial Times *In the suitably immense Himalaya, Ed Douglas logs the achievements and travails from Paleolithic times to the present day of the peoples who have laboured in and around Asia's mountain spine ... enlivening Himalaya's history with a host of minor characters ... Such unsung endeavours are a delight ... The research is impressive ... always authoritative ... Anyone with a serious interest in the Himalayan region will want to buy it and will find it invaluable * Times Literary Supplement *
£12.34
Icon Books The Newlyweds: Young People Fighting for Love in
Book Synopsis'Staggeringly good... Much like Lisa Taddeo's Three Women, it reads more like a novel than a piece of non-fiction... it does what all great writing should - it puts us into the world of someone else, so completely that days later I find myself missing the couples and wondering how their stories end' Marianne Power, The Times'A profound book on the politics of love, of couples who brave everything and everyone to be together. Told with warmth, truth and humanity, Mansi Choksi's The Newlyweds is an extraordinary look at what it takes to be together in modern India' Nikesh Shukla'Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand youth in India today - or for anyone who believes in the galactic powers of love to change history, personal and political' Suketu MehtaWhat would you risk for love?Twenty-first century India is a culture on fast forward, a society which is changing at breakneck speed, where two out of every three people are under the age of thirty-five. These young men and women grew up with the internet, smartphones and social media. But when it comes to love, the weight of thousands of years of tradition cannot so easily be set aside.An extraordinary work of reportage, The Newlyweds is a portrait of modern India told through the stories of three young couples, who defy their families to pursue love. The lesbian couple forced to flee for a chance at a life together. The Hindu woman and Muslim man who must escape under the cover of night after being harassed by a violent mob. And the couple from different castes who know the terrible risk they run by marrying.Writing with great insight and humanity, Mansi Choksi examines the true cost of modern love in an ancient culture. It is a book that will change the way readers think about love, freedom and hope.Trade ReviewA staggeringly good work of literary journalism... Much like Lisa Taddeo's Three Women, it reads more like a novel than a piece of non-fiction... It does what all great writing should - it puts us into the world of someone else, so completely that days later I find myself missing the couples and wondering how their stories end -- Marianne Power * The Times *Compelling, and sometimes heartbreaking -- Nilanjana Roy * Financial Times *A work of non-fiction, but written with such literary flair that you wonder whether the photos of the protagonists are a double bluff and it really is a novel after all... -- Rahila Gupta * New Humanist *If you believe in great love stories, read Mansi Choksi's The Newlyweds. In this exemplary work of narrative non-fiction, Choksi follows three Indian couples for six years to bring us the most nuanced, lyrical, and moving book about love and marriage in modern India yet written. Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand youth in India today - or for anyone who believes in the galactic powers of love to change history, personal and political -- Suketu Mehta, author of MAXIMUM CITY: BOMBAY LOST AND FOUNDThis is a startlingly good book. The meticulously reported stories of three couples - and the social forces that stand in their way - are intimate, revelatory and as gripping as a novel. I couldn't put it down -- Samira Shackle, author of KARACHI VICE: LIFE AND DEATH IN A CONTESTED CITYMansi Choksi's rigorously reported, beautifully written debut signals the arrival of a major new voice in non-fiction -- Sonia Faleiro, author of THE GOOD GIRLSA profound book on the politics of love, of couples who brave everything and everyone to be together. Told with warmth, truth and humanity, Mansi Choksi's The Newlyweds is an extraordinary look at what it takes to be together in modern India -- Nikesh Shukla, author of BROWN BABYChoksi's narrative structure braids the three couple strands cleverly so that, as the stakes keep rising, the tension escalates through cinematic jumps and cuts. Her scenes are alive with singular details, vivid language and crisp dialogue. The net effect is that we become so vested in the lives of these six people - and the collateral damage they leave in their wake - that they linger with us long after reading -- Jenny Bhatt * Star Tribune *A rare insight into modern love in India ... astonishing and unforgettable ... a vibrant observer whose ability lies in capturing the subtleties of life in a way that's nuanced and purposeful -- Dhruti Shah * The New Arab *This is a heart-wrenching and inspiring portrait of love under pressure * Publishers Weekly *Truly lyrical... [A] well-reported account of love in modern India * Kirkus *Love is transformative, even when it fails. That is one of the lessons of The Newlyweds. And just as it is with love, I felt most alive when reading this book -- Amitava Kumar, author of A TIME OUTSIDE THIS TIMEStunning... Mansi Choksi looks at love in modern India with the appealing perspective of both a knowing insider, and a curious, wary outsider. The result is an intimate story of India, and of the perils and pleasures of love, like no other -- Alexis Okeowo, and author of A MOONLESS STARLESS SKYBrave and insightful -- Sunny Singh, author of HOTEL ARCADIA
£15.29
C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd Shrimp to Whale: South Korea from the Forgotten
Book SynopsisCharts the incredible rise of South Korea, from colonisation and civil war to today’s thriving nation. South Korea has a remarkable history. Born from the ashes of imperial domination, partition and a devastating war, back in the 1950s there were real doubts about its survival as an independent state. Yet South Korea endures: today it is a boisterous democracy, a vibrant market economy, a tech powerhouse, and home to the coolest of cultures. In just seventy years, this society has grown from a shrimp into a whale. What explains this extraordinary transformation? For some, it was individual South Koreans who fought to change their country, and still strive to shape it. For others, it was forward-looking political and business leaders with a vision. Either way, it’s clear that this is the story of a people who dreamt big, and whose dreams came true. Shrimp to Whale is a lively history of South Korea, from its millennia-old roots, through the division of the Peninsula, dictatorship and economic growth, to today’s global powerhouse.Trade Review'Captures South Korea’s triumphant postwar ascent from abject poverty and trauma.’ -- The Guardian'This is a book by someone who adores South Korea and has done so since his first trip there as a student. […] Pacheco Pardo captures the remarkable scope of recent triumphs that give South Korea both agility — as Moon’s diplomacy has shown — and the affection of a global audience.' -- Financial Times'[An] engaging account.' -- New Statesman'[A] well-told story of South Korea’s rise to spotlight.' -- The Korea Herald''Shrimp to Whale' is an enthusiastic and breezy book that trumpets the success of South Korea... It surveys the country's complex and fascinating story, and its rise from the bottom to where it is today.' * Diplomatic Courier *'A wonderful introduction to contemporary Korean history. This book shows how a small "hermit nation" in Northeast Asia has transformed into a vibrant, dynamic society. A must-read for those who want to understand Korea today.' -- Sung-Hwan Kim, Chairman of the East Asia Foundation, former South Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade'A fluid and informative read. Pacheco Pardo's recounting of Korea's remarkable odyssey is accessible to a general audience, as well as an important contribution to the scholarship in the field. Highly recommended!' -- Victor Cha, author of 'The Impossible State', and former Director for Asian Affairs, US National Security Council'A wide-ranging, lucidly written history. The author tracks South Korea's dizzying and rapid transformation into one of the world's most notable middle powers and regional dynamos--from independence to the Covid-19 pandemic.' -- Ankit Panda, author of Kim Jong Un and the Bomb'Pacheco Pardo observes Korea with empathy and admiration, as only a Spaniard might. He understands the profound pain that was inflicted on the Koreans by a civil war, and the dictatorship that preceded the feisty democracy they enjoy today. In this beautiful account, he celebrates the uncommon resilience and courage of the Korean people, giving the world the benefit of their genius and industry.' -- Meredith Woo, East Asian politics expert and President of Sweet Briar College'With passion, comprehensive depth and a bird’s eye view from afar and up close, this is a valuable read for anyone with an intellectual curiosity in South Korea and its remarkable journey, achieving in several decades what has taken others centuries or millennia.' -- Eun Mee Kim, President of Ewha Womans University, Seoul'Since the Korean War, Korea has established itself as a "Global Korea". This book introduces Korean politics, economy and democratisation, and the global phenomenon K-pop, which have transformed from shrimps to whales. Pacheco Pardo's book will be an insightful guide for the general public as well as experts who seek to gain a deeper understanding of Korea.' -- Sang Hyun Lee, President of the Sejong Institute
£23.75
Flame Tree Publishing Indian Ancient Origins
Book SynopsisIn the origins of Ancient India lie the seeds of gods and legends that populate the mythologies, philosophies and culture of the continent. From the migrations of the earliest people into the basin of the Indus and the city of Harappan, to the rise of the Ganges civilization, this new book gives an insight into the rich diversity of India today.
£10.44
