Book Description
On March 8, 1421, the largest fleet the world had ever seen set sail from China. Its mission was "to proceed all the way to the ends of the earth to collect tribute from the barbarians beyond the seas" and unite the whole world in Confucian harmony.
When it returned in October 1423, the emperor had fallen, leaving China in political and economic chaos. The great ships were left to rot at their moorings and the records of their journeys were destroyed. Lost in China's long, self-imposed isolation that followed was the knowledge that Chinese ships had reached America seventy years before Columbus and had circumnavigated the globe a century before Magellan. Also concealed was how the Chinese colonized America before the Europeans and transplanted in America and other countries the principal economic crops that have fed and clothed the world.
Unveiling incontrovertible evidence of these astonishing voyages, 1421 rewrites our understanding of history. Our knowledge of world exploration as it has been commonly accepted for centuries must now be reconceived due to this landmark work of historical investigation.
Customer Reviews:
1421 .......2007-09-29
1421 is a book that should be required reading from high school to the board room.
Interesting, hard to put down, true?.......2007-09-23
I found the book fascinating and easy to read. While the claims made by the author are stunning, he presents a plausible case for their authenticity. If true, the thesis of 1421 turns history upside down. If even partly true, the book sheds light on a part of history often ignored by American schools, 15th century China. I personally find it hard to digest all the claims made by Menzies, however, some of the evidence is tremendously compelling. As a history teacher I will be reading other articles and books related to this topic to gain a more comprehensive view from all sides of the issue.
Little research, lots of conjecture.......2007-09-20
This is a terrible book that is supposed to be based on credible research but which is mainly filled with guessing and conjecture. The book revolves around a map that could describe, with proper stretching, changing of markings and such, the New World, reminding me of the "science" that is the translation of Nostradamus' prophecies. Menzies links any unexplained artifacts around the world that may date to the early 1400s to this particular expedition, and repeatedly discounts without argument other logical explanations that would likely have created these artifacts.
The likelihood of this story being true is further degraded by fact that the Chinese, a civilization known for keeping detailed records of its history, have never, before or after the publication of this book, attempted to claim any role in the discovery of the Americas.
Placed in the fiction section I would give it two stars. Promoted as a serious piece of research and historical fact, it deserves zero.
1421.......2007-09-15
Absolutely fascinating read. Winds, current, stars, latitude, longitude, ship design, historical maps all play a part in the supposition that the Chinese were the first to discover the western hemisphere and to have had the most efficient trading empire in their own hemisphere years before the Italian, Portuguese, Spaish and English captains made their historic voyages. The author makes a believable statement that the Chinese got to the western hemisphere first. His suppositions and conclusions come after careful and complicated studies which at times cause the reader to take a jump of faith. Now looking at Latin American pottery, Inuit faces, etc., you see Chinese eyes, art designs and wonder. And the crossing of fruits, vegetables, trees, flowers, horses, etc. between east and west is amazing and convincing. The book highly recommended.
lost history.......2007-09-06
Gavin has spent years chaseing leads that suggest america was populated by chinese peoples.With Mertz and Vinning as backup not to mention Hendon Harris Gaven has pin pointed the physical landmarks through his journeys.As a best seller it is a long and fast read.
Average customer rating:
- Calculations are only as good as your numbers
- Pants on fire?
- Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
- Very Interesting
- History as Science Fiction
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History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
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ASIN: 2913621058 |
Book Description
Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.
Customer Reviews:
Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03
Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.
Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19
Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.
Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09
There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.
For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.
Very Interesting.......2007-03-07
It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.
History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10
Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.
I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.
Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.
Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.
I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.
This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.
Book Description
"This incredible story, which plunges us immediately into the bloodiest aspects of the war, is also a suspenseful autobiography that will keep you chewing your fingernails to see if Van Devanter survives any of it at all. She proves herself a natural storyteller. . . . The most extraordinary part in this book is Van Devanter's plight after the war-her attempt to retrieve the love of her family, only to realize they don't want to see her slides, hear her stories; her assignment to menial duties at Walter Reed Army Hospital. . . . How Van Devanter survives all of this to become, incredibly, a stronger person for it is what makes her book so riveting."-San Francisco Chronicle
"An awesome, painfully honest look at war through a woman's eyes. Her letters home and startling images of life in a combat zone-surgeons fighting to save a Vietnamese baby wounded in utero, the ever-present stench of napalm-charred flesh, a beloved priest's gentle humor and appalling death, the casual heroism of her colleagues, a Vietnamese 'Papa-san' trying to talk his dead child back to life, a haunting snapshot dropped by a dying soldier with no face-tell the story of a young American's rude initiation to the best and the worst of humanity."-Washington Post
"Moving, powerful . . . a healing book."-Ms. Magazine
"This book reads like a diary: unguarded, heartfelt. . . . [It] is both moving and valu-able, for reminding us so vividly that war is indeed hell . . . and that its most tested heroes are the doctors and nurses who doggedly labor not just to save life, but also to keep their respect for it, even as their surviving patients are sent out, once more, unto the breach."-Harper's Magazine
"In Vietnam, reality hit fast: Van Devanter's plane was fired on when it landed in Saigon; and after three days of adjustment, she was assigned to the 71st Evacuation Hospital, a 'MASH-type facility' near the Cambodian border. There, the casualties, . . . the personal danger, the fatigue, the heat, rain, and mud, the harassment of officers enforcing petty regulations, and above all the meaninglessness of American involvement rapidly put an end to Van Devanter's blind patriotism, her innocence, and her youth. . . . Van Devanter brings us face to face with the toll that undeclared war took on its combatants."-Kirkus Reviews
"If you read only one work about Vietnam, make this the one. . . . This is the way it was, as seen through the eyes of an army second lieutenant when she was twenty-two. I believe her completely, because this reviewer remembers Vietnam the same way, when he was a nineteen-year-old Marine PFC."-Deseret Sentinel
Customer Reviews:
Sex, lies and surgical tape...30+ years later.......2007-08-07
Based on my personal observations, Lynda was the laughing stock of the 71st Evac Hospital. And, she was also almost universally disliked. You had to tolerate her. But, you didn't have to like her. I heard alot from her other "friends" there in 1971. And, I was unfortunate enough to have to spend an afternoon, sitting in a jeep in downtown Pleiku, while she and a friend were wined and dined, so I observed her interactions firsthand. She was laughed at constantly because she was always trying to get out of doing something. But, that was Vietnam's fault. Not hers.
The book is not even good fiction. About 95% of the happenings she claimed never occurred. If they occurred they occurred to someone else, someplace else. The majority of the book is nothing but flights of fancy from a woman that wouldn't know the truth if it bit her. Every problem she ever had, since 1969, was blamed on Vietnam, the people she worked with, the war, the weather, whatever. Not one time in her book did she ever take responsibility for her actions and the repercussions she got from bad decisions.
My review of this book is not as fluent as others. But, my statements are based on personal experience with the subject matter of her and this book firsthand. I was there, I know.
Home Before Morning.......2007-05-18
I read this book for the first time many years ago now and it touched a cord in me simply at the time I was going thru something similar myself being discharged from the military and finding that you really have no place in the world. I never experienced anything like she did and how she overcame all her obstacles only attests to the strength of the person she became because of it. I believe she has passed on now due to exposure of agent organge while serving our country. I always try to make people see just what sacrifices that our fighting men and women go thru to keep us free that we never even hear about except very rarely in such books as this one. "They" don't want this kind of information coming out to let us know just what has really gone on. This continues to be one of my favorite books and I generally wind up reading it a few times a year. It's one book that will never be let go. It is well worth reading and I guarantee you it will make you think and be appreciative of the little things that we all take for granted.
honest look into the time and culture of the Vietnam War.......2007-01-20
Lynda was a U.S. Army nurse at the 71st Evacuation Hospital in Pleiku from 1969-70. In 1979, a year after the founding of Vietnam Veterans of America, she helped launch and became the head of VVA's Women's Project. She also began counseling other Vietnam veterans and conducting seminars around the country. Lynda was among the first few who committed herself to helping herself and others recover from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) following Vietnam. I knew Lynda personally for many years. It took me a few years to get around to reading this book and when I did I wished I had read it earlier as it provided me a lot of insight into what ordinary men and women were thinking and feeling as they found their lives involved in the quagmire called Vietnam and the impact that it had upon them for the remainder of their lives. Honest, sad, vivid. Lynda passed away in 2002.
Life Changing.......2006-06-11
Growing up in the generation just past the edge of the Vietnam War era, I never really understood the war or the veterans. As a nurse, I started reading this book for the "nursing story." By the end of the book, I had a whole new view on the war, nurses in the war, veterans, the pain of war and the aftermath. I am appalled at the treatment, such as being spit on when our troops returned. It literally was life altering in my thought process of this era. Soon after reading it, a Vietnam vet. accompanied his wife for a procedure in the unit I worked. He openly told me that he had been sober for 2 months, and I was able to look at him in a whole new light and sincerely tell him how great that was. Another reminder that we have no right to judge others.
Fact or Fiction??.......2006-04-15
Ms. Van Devanter passed away in 2002. She, along with all who served in Vietnam, deserve our respect and appreciation for the sacrifices which they made in a very difficult and unpopular war.
I read this book and was deeply moved. However, just after I read the book I found a website dedicated to the memory of the 71st evac hospital near Pleiku where Ms. Van Devanter served. The author of the website served side by side with Ms. Van Devanter during her tour in Vietnam. I asked him what his thoughts were on the book. Here is his reply:
"Let me just say it like this: "Home Before Morning" is a wonderful blend of facts and exaggerated facts, designed to entertain and promote a certain agenda.....was that diplomatic enough?? I was fortunate enough to visit with Van (her nickname) while she was on a book tour that included my hometown. We had a great visit and she gave me a copy and wrote some nice things on the coverleaf. I took it home and read it that night, then had lunch with her the following day. She, of course, wanted to know what I thought of it. I asked her where she'd served, as it was obviously not at the 71st. We both laughed about that and she admitted that she wanted to sell books.
Van and I arrived at the 71st within days of each other and worked together every day until she was transferred out. She was an officer and I was an enlisted man, so we lived in different worlds, though working together 12 hours a day. Since we worked together, we sometimes hung out with the same gang...the OR/ER/Post-OP/X-ray bunch. After a few months of patching up GIs, NVA, civilians, etc., we both got disenchanted with the way the war was going and became politically active and were among the ringleaders of the "Great Turkey Day Fast" of Thanksgiving Day, 1969...consisting of refusal to eat Thanksgiving Dinner to protest the manner in which the war was being fought.
The case that she identifies as Gene was actually one that I scrubbed on. It's among the stories I have listed on the site. It was pretty gruesome and must have touched a nerve in her. Each of us who served there has at least one case that we think about every day.
Lest you believe that the war was as Van described it...it wasn't! There were lots of times when we had NO cases at all and a few very scary times when we had many more cases than we could handle. As in most military situations, it was 99% boredom and 1% sheer terror! 99% of the time we were operating on 1% of our brain power and 1% of the time we needed 150%!! Sometimes it was really wild! I think there's a story about "Push" that describes it..if not, I'll have to write it down."
You be the judge.
Amazon.com
China has endured much hardship in its history, as Iris Chang shows in her ably researched The Rape of Nanking, a book that recounts the horrible events in that eastern Chinese city under Japanese occupation in the late 1930s. Nanking, she writes, served as a kind of laboratory in which Japanese soldiers were taught to slaughter unarmed, unresisting civilians, as they would later do throughout Asia. Likening their victims to insects and animals, the Japanese commanders orchestrated a campaign in which several hundred thousand--no one is sure just how many--Chinese soldiers and noncombatants alike were killed. Chang turns up an unlikely hero in German businessman John Rabe, a devoted member of the Nazi party who importuned Adolf Hitler to intervene and stop the slaughter, and who personally saved the lives of countless residents of Nanking. She also suggests that the Japanese government pay reparations and apologize for its army's horrific acts of 60 years ago.
Book Description
In December 1937, the Japanese army swept into the ancient city of Nanking. Within weeks, more than 300,000 Chinese civilians were systematically raped, tortured, and murdered--a death toll exceeding that of the atomic blasts of Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined. Using extensive interviews with survivors and newly discovered documents, Iris Chang has written what will surely be the definitive history of this horrifying episode. The Rape of Nanking tells the story from three perspectives: of the Japanese soldiers who performed it, of the Chinese civilians who endured it, and of a group of Europeans and Americans who refused to abandon the city and were able to create a safety zone that saved almost 300,000 Chinese. Among these was the Nazi John Rabe, an unlikely hero whom Chang calls the "Oskar Schindler of China" and who worked tirelessly to protect the innocent and publicize the horror. More than just narrating the details of an orgy of violence, The Rape of Nanking analyzes the militaristic culture that fostered in the Japanese soldiers a total disregard for human life. Finally, it tells the appalling story: about how the advent of the Cold War led to a concerted effort on the part of the West and even the Chinese to stifle open discussion of this atrocity. Indeed, Chang characterizes this conspiracy of silence, that persists to this day, as "a second rape."
Customer Reviews:
The veneer of civilization is exceedingly thin.......2007-08-21
The bestial massacre of Nanking is by any standards one of the worst evil deeds in the history of mankind. Hundreds of thousands of men, women, children and babies were brutally slaughtered in a few weeks. For those who will (or can) not read this book only one example: babies were impaled on bayonets and thrown in boiling water. Even the dead didn't receive a human treatment. Their bodies were thrown to the dogs as food.
How (was) is it possible that part of mankind sank bank into such unlimited barbarism?
The author sees different reasons:
Religion: the emperor was a god and `next to the emperor all individual life was valueless.'
Politics: Japan was an unchequed authoritarian regime dominated by the military.
Racism: the Japanese considered themselves as a master-race, with a virulent contempt for the Chinese.
Education (military) and indoctrination: teenagers were molded into killing machines.'
As one soldier put is: `In Nanking everyone became a demon within three months.'
What happened in Nanking was received jubilantly by the jingoist Japanese press. Newspapers even published the outcome of a decapitation contest. The events were also covered internationally, but it was `frightening to see how easily mankind can accept genocides.'
In sharp contrast with the unmoved international community, a courageous group of foreigners created a safety zone saving thousands of Chinese lives.
Japan has a moral obligation to present at least an official apology for what happened during the war. `Nanking was only a fraction of the totality of the atrocities committed.'
The culprits received pensions and benefits, while the victims who survived continue to suffer shame, poverty and chronic physical and mental pains.
This book is a truly exceptional illustration (also graphically) of how the thin veneer of civilization can be broken.
Highly recommended, but only for those with a strong stomach.
As disturbing as it is shocking.......2007-07-02
Iris Chang has close personal ties to the Nanking Massacre - her parents narrowly escaped the orgy of violence that ensued in 1938 - 1939. This raises questions of objectivity, which Chang clearly struggles with, hence the four stars. However, the book is well-researched and credible sources are cited - a necessary point given the accusations made.
Chang begins with a brief history of modern (since the Meji restoration) Japanese history, seeking to provide some explaination for the barbarity that happened in China during the Japanese occupation. This provides some critical background information before the catalogue of atrocities are presented in gruesome detail: gang rapes, the desecration of corpses, torture - the savagery and brutality of which appalled me. The primary sources used in researching this are irrefutable to the serious historian.
Chang then goes on to talk about the aftermath of the "Rape of Nanking" begining with the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (the "Asian Nuremburg" trial) concluding with an excellent analysis of why so few were punished and what the long-term consequences of not addressing the larger issue of Japanese war crimes are, especially in light of her claim that what happened in Nanking was deliberate Japanese policy; in fact, she goes on to write that the Nanking massacre was "a metaphor for Japanese behaviour during the war." The book concludes exploring why the Holocaust in Europe is much more familar than the atrocities committed in Asia.
To some Japanese, Chang's claims are exaggerations or fabrications. (See Tanaka Maasaki's "What Really Happened in Nanking" for this perspective.) The historical record, however, clearly supports Chang's account. What struck me most deeply, however, was the similarity between the accounts of 1938 China and Yugoslavia in the 1990's, particularly the contest over whose story is told (and which history is written) and who is punished. There are lessons to be learned here larger than a single event. Recommended reading for armchair historians.
Powerful Account of a Very Tragic Wartime Catastrophe.......2007-06-25
Iris Chang's "The Rape of Nanking" is a horrifying and gruesome account of the infamous "Rape of Nanjing" where in less than a two month span from 1937-1938, an estimated 200,000-450,000 captured Chinese civilians and unarmed, surrendering solders were massacred and/or raped in cold blood by the Japanese Military during World War II. It is also about the aftermath of the massacre in a historical sense, and the toll it has had on the victims, historians, and the world, especially Sino-Japanese relations.
Chang's writing is intense, emotional, detailed, and thought provoking. Given that her grandparents were from Nanjing and narrowly escaped their own fate from the hell of what happened there, we must read this with an understanding that Chang is inherently biased in her accounts and at times comes off as extremely emotional in her contempt of the Japanese in certain passages.
Despite her bias, she desperately tries to stay objective in her accounts, though not always successfully (the passage, even despite the cited references, on Japanese being cannibals of murdered chinese male's genitalia seemed highly questionable and speculative).
Chang makes strides in her discussion of historiology by pointing out the cancer of how history is manipulated by politics, government intervention, propaganda, radical Conservatism/Liberalism, diplomacy and political events. Because of the "Cold War", "Sino-Japanese relations", WWII itself" and "US-Japanese allegiances", the events of Nanjing have been eerily and perhaps permanently distorted at the expense of 100's of thousands of innocent victims.
The book is well organized and informative although I question her premise which nearly implies that American society and that even Japanese society is ignorant of the events that occurred in Nanjing in 1937-1938. In her premise for writing the book, she attempts to imply that there was nearly no literary English reference to the Rape of Nanjing and provided only two literary accounts in English (both written 50 years after the "Rape") of this massacre. However, she failed to site the well documented account of this Massacre in the famous military television documentary seen by millions of Americans and Europeans in the 1970s, "The World at War" where Sir Laurence Olivier made a very clear historical historical reference while footage was shown of the massacre including General Matsui's march on horse through the streets of Nanjing and footage of tied Chinese captives murdered execution style while on their knees and hands tied behind their backs:
"It was here that Nanking in December 1937 that the Japanese perpetrated what was until then, one of the worst atrocities of this century when their troops massacred more than 200,000 Chinese in cold blood.
There is also a minor question statistic she references with respect to the number of Americans killed in the Korean ar which she noted 34,000. In Washington DC, the memorial noted over 54,000 Americans dead. But, to Chang's credit, as I've learned in this book, accounting for the number of dead is never an absolute accuracy. For example, is a person dying of a disease or out of accident during war considered having been killed in a war? That's highly subjective. An American bias would count that death as a casualty of war whereby Pro Chinese or North Korean source might not accounts for that death. Both have case to include or exclude that number from the number of casualties.
The most interesting passages relate to Chang's discussion of the acts of humanity during this catastrophe, specifically of the spectacular irony of how John Rabe, an educated German who even held a stron Nazi fervor (the Nazi's were allies of Japan during the war) was responsible for saving the lives of over 300,000 Chinese by setting up a miniscule 2.5 square mile safety zone within proximity of where the Rape and Massacre happened.
My favorite passage in this entire book was on her research of what happened to John Rabe after he left Nanjing. It was beautifully written and had me reading copiously to find her resolution on what happened to thsi "Schindler of Nanjing."
Poignant also was her research on the outcomes of other European and Americans who were in Nanjing during the siege and how politics ostracized these heros whose humanitarian efforts went unnoticed.
In her introduction, Iris Chang mused that her "greatest hope is that this book will inspire other authors and historians to investigate the stories of Nanjing" and that it will "stir the conscience of Japan to accept responsibility for this incident.
This book should really inspire the world to skeptically evaluate their own histories with a fine tooth comb given the Japanese Government's attempt to undermine what happened in Nanking.
On a side note, this book also inspires me to read more of the Jewish communities who fled Nazi Persecution Europe to live in Shangahi, which had been coincidentally the starting point of Japanese occupation prior to the capture of Nanjing. This book also inspires me to research the horror of the Bataan Death March and of the mass burials that occurred in Hong Kong, other areas of China, the Phillipines and other areas that had been seized by the Imperialist Japanese forces during WWII.
Disturbing, enlightening, and thoughtful.......2007-06-07
The Rape of Nanking is an amazingly easy read considering the dark subject that it addresses. Chang did an outstanding job of compiling absolutely airtight, irrefutable information about the atrocities committed by the Japanese military in 1937, but this book is far more than simply an endless recitation of that evidence. When I first picked up this book I feared that it would simply be 200+ pages of stories about atrocities. But as Chang herself noted early in the book, doing so would simply be monotonous and would eventually numb the reader. Instead, she discusses several different and important aspects about the Rape of Nanking, beginning with an historical overview of the roots of imperial Japan and the culture that allowed an entire generation of young men to become cruel, inhumane butchers. She goes on to inform the reader about the conflict between Japan and China, and eventually of course relates specific facts about the savagery committed against so many hundreds of thousands of Chinese in Nanking. But the book does not stop there. Chang goes to great lengths to describe the heroic efforts of a handful of westerners who were able to save hundreds of thousands of Chinese from certain torture and death. She concludes by discussing the aftermath of the Rape of Nanking and how it remains an incredibly sensitive topic for so many people. This is an absolutely outstanding work of nonfiction that everyone should read. The reviewers here who have disparaged Chang and her effort to ensure that the world never forgets about the evil that occurred in Nanking should be ashamed of themselves. People like that only illustrate how important it is to keep the memory of Nanking alive and never surrender to those who would bury the truth because they are too cowardly to face it.
Important, necessary, courageous and seminal book........2007-05-27
Chang's account has inspired a 2007 expensive and carefully-marketed documentary film of the same title, and that is the book's chief value--as an awareness-raising event that exposes our frequently "selective" focus on incidents of man's inhumanity to man (Rwanda being one such incident of selective amnesia). The book is an essential artifact, and Chang should be applauded for her conscientiousness, diligence, and courage in producing what has already proven to be a seminal work, producing ground-shaking tremors throughout the international community.
For many, if not most, readers, the Introduction and Epilogue will most likely prove sufficient to convey the author's intended purpose and effect. Those who take pleasure in marking the historical circumstances of war and its aftermath, along with reading graphic descriptions of sensational, specific incidents of torture, etc.), will no doubt wish to read the entire account. For others the aforementioned two sections, an account such as the one on Wikipedia, and the two-part video on Youtube, "The Rape of Nanking" (ignore the transparently weak rebuttals), should be sufficient.
Some readers will appreciate Chang's simplification of the atrocity and the reasons for it. She issues a disclaimer in the Introduction that "Japan bashing" is the farthest thing from her mind, but the ensuing account is one that paints the Japanese--from the ancient Samurai/Bushido code to the 20th-century expansionist mentality to the deification of the emperor to the robotic school system to the cruel and inhuman training of its own military youth to the enforced slavery of "comfort women" to Japan's continual and continuing denial of the past--in broad, culturally incriminating, stereotyping strokes. A reader, therefore, needs to exercise some counterbalancing skepticism--for example, toward the account of the Samurai, who represented an ideal, much like the knights of Camelot or the radical individualists of the American frontier, from which modern Japan deviated rather than suffered. Also, it has been shown that the "comfort women" were also supplied, following World War II, to thousands of American troops, and with the cooperation of the American post-War military command.
In answering the all-important question of "why," Chang is quite convincing with her limited, though largely undeveloped, list of reasons--ranging from "transference of oppression" (what we might refer to as the "wife-battering syndrome") to the herd mentality of losers suddenly cast in the role of conquerors to an entire culture's utter conviction of following a divine imperative in the best interests of China as well as Japan. Chang hits hardest on the genocide that occurs because nations who should know better (the U.S., for example) are content to remain disengaged from whatever doesn't affect them directly. But her most compelling reason, to my mind, is cultural-racial pride, a theme that during the American Civil War produced suffering and death exceeding by far anything that occurred at Nanking.
Chang even suggests that because the Japanese and Chinese were so similar in skin color and physical appearance, the racial antagonism was intensified. Not possessing the verifiable demarcation of lighter or darker skin color, the Japanese were all the more zealous to proclaim their superiority. So again and again we're brought back to the deadliest sin of all--from Greek tragedy to Biblical writings to Faulkner's accounts of the tragic fall of the Old South: hubris, arrogance, or just plain pride, which unfortunately is exclusive to no individual human being or nation.
By now, you'd think we'd begin to get the message. And it's not about the Japanese.
Amazon.com
Sun Tzu's Art of War just got better. The Illustrated Art of War enlivens Thomas Cleary's complete translation, including commentaries, with full-color reproductions of paintings and statuary from China and Japan. Talk about martial art--these depictions show full battles scenes, the Chinese god of war, weaponry, processions--even an ancient map. --Brian Bruya
Book Description
With well over a million copies sold, Sun Tzu's The Art of War is a true masterpiece, a series of brilliant aphorisms that illuminate the planning and conduct of war. Now this classic work is available in an elegant illustrated edition, featuring seventy-five color and black-and-white images. From perceptive descriptions of the nine varieties of terrain, to advice on how to gage an enemy's weaknesses and strengths, to suggestions on the employment of secret agents, here is timeless advice on combat and military strategy. Sun Tzu's writings are unsurpassed in depth of understanding, shedding light not only on battlefield maneuvers, but also on the relevant economic, political, and psychological factors that can shape the outcome of warfare. Equally important, the precepts outlined by Sun Tzu over two thousand years ago can be applied with great success outside the theater of war. Indeed, it is read avidly by corporate executives worldwide and has been touted in the movie Wall Street and the television series The Sopranos as the ultimate guide to strategy. Finally, this edition offers the definitive translation of Sun Tzu's text, by former U.S. Marine Brigadier General Samuel Griffith, who was also an authority of Mao Tse-Tung. Remarkable for its clear organization, lucid prose, and the acuity of its intellectual and moral insights, The Art of War is the definitive study of combat. It is an essential book for military history buffs, and an ideal gift for anyone who is interested in tactics and strategy, whether on the battlefield or in the boardroom.
Customer Reviews:
Great edition for gift giving.......2007-07-11
This edition makes for a terrific gift for the college graduate. The illustrations and photos add visual interest; the text layout makes for "easy" reading. Although we already own several editions of this classic, this will be added to our personal collection.
If only GW Bush had read it first........2007-07-03
This is a classic work on what works and doesn't work it war. It is from the 3rd century BC and cuts through the BS of modern war science. Must reading for all future Presidents, Secretaries of Defense and General Officers.
book arrived on time and in condition described.......2007-06-12
book arrived on time and in condition described
eager for audiobook of this .......2007-04-11
As a Chinese, I can say that author grasp the essence of Art of war and the English is beautiful.
I see adiobook on this topic. What no one for this version? strongly suggest and if come out I would buy it firstly.
Factoids.......2007-04-09
Thought I provide some facts about this edition of The Art of War by Sun Tzu, translated by Samuel B. Griffith. The translation in this book is the same as the UNESCO edition, but there are some differences in the contents.
Removes Appendix III. Sun Tzu in Western Languages
Removes Appendix IV. Brief Biographies of the Commentators
Removes the Maps
Adds seventy-five images
Pages are in a satin texture
In addition, this translation was done earlier than the findings from 1972, however, the analysis and commentary is top notch, so I would definitely recommend reading this and additional more up to date translation to complement.
Amazon.com
As it flexes its diplomatic and military muscles, China is becoming an increasingly powerful player on the world stage. Richard Bernstein and Ross Munro's flawed but important The Coming Conflict with China analyzed the implications for American policymakers. Edward Timperlake and William Triplett also believe that a confrontation between China and the U.S. is inevitable. In Red Dragon Rising, they describe a series of worst-case scenarios, such as a bloody invasion of Taiwan. If the situation is as dangerous as they indicate, however, they have done America a disservice by the extreme political spin they give their arguments. They attempt to associate the Clinton administration with every evil of which China's unsavory Communist regime is capable. Photographs of Clinton and Gore talking with Chinese leaders are illustrated to prove their complicity with butchers--but what should we make of photos of Bush doing the same? A reference to Chinese New Year as Tet, a purely Vietnamese term, suggests the parameters of the authors' experience. In a disclaimer on the cover, they state that their details of the Tiananmen massacre are necessary to show the true nature of Communist China's government, but their lurid descriptions are gratuitous. This work is not balanced analysis or serious contemporary history but party-political poison. Red Dragon Rising is a cheap book, full of cheap shots (it is simplistic to hold China, for all its faults, responsible for "two million Cambodians killed"), whose political bias cheapens its important subject. Right-wing conspiracy theorists will love this book; others will not. --John Stevenson
Book Description
This book illuminates the Chinese People's Liberation Army's activities and the threat they pose to America.
Customer Reviews:
Insight to China's plans for their perceived enemies........2007-05-08
This book spells out the known weapons China has, as well as what destruction they can reap. It is frightening in what China has armed know enemies of the US with. It does indeed credit Russia with selling the weapons to China. It points out how naive people are in this nation. Any one who reads this book should be ready to fight to keep his weapon least he become like the people in Tiananmen Square.
You fail Ed.......2007-04-28
Let's see, nearly a decade after the first edition of this book was published and narry a missile fired between the U.S. and China. In fact, the two nations have only become more cooperative with each other, i.e. Korea, currency revaluation, the war on terror, etc.
Can we just ignore these "so-and-so is a 'coming threat' to America" paranoid delusions? I think there are more important, and more real enemies to America that would need to be dealt with, rather than muddy the waters with paranoid speculations.
There are better books than this one.......2005-06-13
I bought this book to see China's potential growth in every respect. I am very disappointed after reading the book. At the introduction of the book author gives his solution as "Double the military and double again if needed be. Build more B-2 ,F-22 , F/A 18 airplanes. Mobilize the industry for munitions production. Go forward for ballistic missile systems". Also he curses Clinton Administration countless times for its foreign policy and promotes Bush presidency. He claims that Clinton got campaign money from China and favors them. What about Bush-Saudý-9/11 connections? Not even a word.
He also trying to show Chinese Regime brutality like selling weapons to both sides at Iraq-Iran war (no word from Senior Bush, and Oliver North), Selling guns to 3rd world countries and make money (No Saudi-US gun Trade mentioned), no respect to UN decisions (What Mr. Bush did in Iraq?) Selling missile systems to Pakistan while US forcing sanctions (Mr. Bush lifted the sanctions after 9/11 to non-Democratic Pakistan regime).
He insists that's why US must declare war against China, not strategic partnership like Clinton did. Strategic partnership gives China open ýtself to the world and influenced by democratic system. On the long run, Chinese people will select democracy and bury the old communist regime like East Europe did.
There are many right points in the book like Týananmen Square Massacre, but the these accurate points fades due to being Clinton hater.
If you want to learn something about China, this one sided, extreme rightist book is not the one. Do not buy it and do not read it.
A Bill of Indictment against the Clinton Administration.......2005-02-21
And you believed in the myth of China's peaceful rise? You do so at your peril. China has a long history of aggression and threatening its neighbors. Today, it has a greater capacity to wreck havok than it has at any point in its Communist history, and we to a large extent have Clinton to blame for it. There is plenty of evidence provided from reputable sources regarding the manner in which the Chinese government infultrated the Clinton Administration, as well as the ever present threat that China presents not only to the United States, but also its Asian neighbors like Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, and most of all Taiwan.
Works like this are ignored at our peril. For a long time, people have seemed to believe the in best possibility for Communist China, always to have been shown for ignorance in the end. Those who adulate over China today run the same risk. Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it. Unfortunately, there are too many people who have a lack of knowledge of China's history to know the true nature of the threat. This book will go some of the way to alleviating that ignorance.
The Red Chinese Threat to U.S. National Security.......2004-08-31
In the news, I recently heard a People's Liberation Army strategist, Liu Jiangjia, stated brusquely: "War is not far from us now. A new arms race has started to develop." First published in 1999, during the twilight of the Clinton Administration, this Regnery classic has made light of Clinton overtures to Beijing and the startling developments in Red China's military industrial complex. Red China is well on its way to becoming a hegemonic military superpower as her economic liberalization and foreign trade continues to buoy her GDP. Moreover, her military insiders often speak of the U.S. as an "enemy" and a "threat." Red China is embracing what the CIA calls a social market economy. Essentially, kleptocrat communist party bosses are taking the helm in controlling the vibrant military-industrial consortiums with foreign investors. China's economy is developing rapidly. Western expertise and investment from aerospace American companies like Boeing, for example, may prove to be a huge national security risk. (Frankly, American companies in the absence of firm U.S. government controls have proven willingness to compromise American security for profit.) The Clinton Administration presided over an immense relaxation of technology transfer controls and has turned a blind eye to Chinese espionage. Ethnic Chinese have seized economic and/or political control over nations throughout the Pacific Rim. However, one should realize many ethnic Chinese don't have sympathy with the Red regime in Beijing like the Taiwanese. The Chinese have been actively expanding their reach throughout Pacific Rim and are even getting strong Latin American connections. For example, a PLA-affiliated company has seized control of the Panama Canal and has built a transshipment facility in the Bahamas. China could feasibly use Panama as strategic chokepoint cutting off U.S. trade. Obviously this economic jugular vein can be a useful blackmail chip in power politics games. Books like _Red Cocaine_ have demonstrated a considerable Sino-Soviet involvement in the drug trade and no doubt Chinese shipping industry carries opium bound for the Americas. Red China's connection with radical Islamist countries in arms dealings is alarming. If China ever wanted to subject the giant Gulliver to a campaign of terrorism, it's conceivable she could do so covertly by arming and assisting efforts of radical Islamist terrorists. China has demonstrated a willingness to work with radical Islamist regimes and Muslim nations to enhance their military and nuclear programs. Some of the more dangerous technology transfers of U.S. knowledge to Red China may be through intermediaries like Israel. The authors have pointed out that Israel - America's professed ally - is selling weapons and sensitive technology to Red China. They have assisted in the development of a Chinese fighter based on the F-16. What is more alarming is that Israel is usually the first to get America's latest and greatest hi-tech weaponry once it goes into production. The strategic technological lead that the new JSF and F-22 weapons programs gives the U.S. could be egregiously compromised if Israel as a participant leaks sensitive technology to Red China for profit. As an addendum to this book's findings, I would add careful news analysis reveals that the Bush Administration frankly has waffled on Taiwan and has made more concessions to China and even hinted at support for unification with the mainland. This is something that the defend the GOP come hell or high water crowd simply ignores. Moreover, he has likely failed to sufficiently address the economic and security threats China poses. Obviously, the administration has failed to rein in on the openness with China and the loosening of technology transfer controls that his predecessor Clinton initiated. Timperlake and Triplett are to be commended for their research in profiling the national security threat posed by Red China. Though, I think more substantive in-depth research could have been done. (I give it a 3.5/5.0 rating.)
Book Description
A hundred years before Columbus and his fellow Europeans began making their way to the New World, fleets of giant Chinese junks commanded by the eunuch admiral Zheng He and filled with the empire's finest porcelains, lacquerware, and silk ventured to the edge of the world's "four corners." It was a time of exploration and conquest, but it ended in a retrenchment so complete that less than a century later, it was a crime to go to sea in a multimasted ship. In When China Ruled the Seas, Louise Levathes takes a fascinating and unprecedented look at this dynamic period in China's enigmatic history, focusing on China's rise as a naval power that literally could have ruled the world and at its precipitious plunge into isolation when a new emperor ascended the Dragon Throne. During the brief period from 1405 to 1433, seven epic expeditions brought China's "treasure ships" across the China Seas and the Indian Ocean, from Taiwan to the spice islands of Indonesia and the Malabar coast of India, on to the rich ports of the Persian Gulf and down the African coast, China's "El Dorado," and perhaps even to Australia, three hundred years before Captain Cook was credited with its discovery. With over 300 ships--some measuring as much as 400 feet long and 160 feet wide, with upwards of nine masts and twelve sails, and combined crews sometimes numbering over 28,000 men--the emperor Zhu Di's fantastic fleet was a virtual floating city, a naval expression of his Forbidden City in Beijing. The largest wooden boats ever built, these extraordinary ships were the most technically superior vessels in the world with innovations such as balanced rudders and bulwarked compartments that predated European ships by centuries. For thirty years foreign goods, medicines, geographic knowledge, and cultural insights flowed into China at an extraordinary rate, and China extended its sphere of political power and influence throughout the Indian Ocean. Half the world was in China's grasp, and the rest could easily have been, had the emperor so wished. But instead, China turned inward, as suceeding emperors forbade overseas travel and stopped all building and repair of oceangoing junks. Disobedient merchants and seamen were killed, and within a hundred years the greatest navy the world had ever known willed itself into extinction. The period of China's greatest outward expansion was followed by the period of its greatest isolation. Drawing on eye-witness accounts, official Ming histories, and African, Arab, and Indian sources, many translated for the first time, Levathes brings readers inside China's most illustrious scientific and technological era. She sheds new light on the historical and cultural context in which this great civilization thrived, as well as the perception of other cultures toward this little understood empire at the time. Beautifully illustrated and engagingly written, When China Ruled the Seas is the fullest picture yet of the early Ming Dynasty--the last flowering of Chinese culture before the Manchu invasions.
Customer Reviews:
Not much to treasure in this book.......2007-08-27
Louise Levathes had me at "Treasure Fleet." Those two words next to each other inevitably make for a winning combination. But, while she had me at Treasure Fleet, she soon lost me after that. Which is a shame, because the topic is so darn intriguing. What went wrong? I'm not sure. Throughout the reading of the book, I kept asking myself the same. I wondered if maybe it was the author or the sources or some other unknown factor. All in all, however, the book just was not that interesting--which frustrated me, since I thought it should be. Here's what it felt like. It felt like Louise Levathes had enough information for a nice long National Geographic article, but not near enough for a book. So, to fill in the missing gaps, she added a bunch of pre-history and cultural quirks--many of which had absolutely nothing to do with the era where China ruled the seas. On occasion such offenses are forgivable, especially if the asides are interesting, but I found them to be annoying divergences. Then, when Levathes gets to the meat of the tale, the actual Treasure Fleet, it is surprising how little she actually tells about the treasure fleet's voyages. Certainly, they take several chapters worth and destinations are revealed, foreign countries dabbled on, but it feels so empty of actual, researched material. I understand if Levathes is limited in the information she could have garnered about these expeditions, but if that is the case, it would have been nice to explain the lack of resources to the reader so that the scarcity of knowledge on the voyages can be explained. Here's what I would have liked to see. I would have liked the author to skip past the distant, pre-history of China--or at least summarized the essentials in one, short chapter, and then moved on to the Treasure Fleet, dwelling there for the rest of the book. This could be filled in with accounts from the fleet or from the countries visited or compared with European progress at the time. That is what I would have enjoyed reading. To give Levathes credit, she does drop interesting tidbits here and there, such as the constant philosophical struggles between the Confucians and the Eunuchs in the royal court and how the personalities of the Chinese rulers controlled the fate of the fleet. But those things are verdant oases in an otherwise colorless text. It's possible that there are books out there (or articles, even) that do a better job presenting the world of the Chinese treasure fleet, but it will probably take a while before I'll dare pick them up.
Interesting topic with complicated explication.......2007-07-20
I bought this book because of the long-term interest in the treasure fleets. I have known of their existence for 30 years but did not really know much about them. This book provided a great deal of information and context about an interesting topic. I wonder, however, whether someone who did not already know some Chinese history would be able to follow the narrative. She covers an amazing amount of ground, and I would think that it would be easy to lose track of who was who and what was what. So I would highly recommend the book to someone who is interested in the topic and has some background in Chinese history. I would be more cautious in recommending it to a general reader with no real knowledge of China.
Nice book on Chinese history.......2007-03-19
This book is really a history of the Ming dynasty, with background material of Chinese history before their ascendence. It emphasizes the treasure fleet policies of the Ming dynasty, but there is much more in this book than that.
It is great for the general reader, because you really don't need to bring much to this book, it supplies everything you need to enjoy and benefit from it.
I was dissapointed that there was a lot less information about the voyages than I would have expected from a literate people like the Chineses, but, as explained in the book, all the logs of Zheng He were destroyed in a political blacklash. They were called
"deceitful exaggerations of bizarre things far removed from the testimony of people's eyes and ears."
"The expedition.... wasted tens of myriads of money and grain and ... although he returned with wonderful, precious things, what benefit was it to the state..... Even if the old archives were still preserved, they should be destroyed in order to suppress a repitition of these things."
This sort of attitude became govt policy, and helps to explain China's stagnation.
The most annoying part of the book, and only a small part thankfully, was the author's uncalled for unflattering comparisions between China's enlightened foreign policies and those of the West, including the USA, which, at this time, did not even exist. Her grand conclusion, that China's lack of an aggressive naval presence in the world was a good thing for China, as opposed to the European policies of a later age, seems bizarre in light of Chinese history after the suspension of its outward looking maritime policies.
Afterall, the resulting economic, political, and military stagnation lead to the decline and fall of the Ming dysnasty.
But, ignore the silly politics and just read and enjoy.
Zheng He: A Potential Promoter of "Third World" Unity.......2006-08-26
Louise Levathes' popular history WHEN CHINA RULED THE SEAS is an excellent book, whose star is naturally Zheng He. Although she avoids Gavin Menzies' fantastic theory that he reached the Americas, she demonstrates very well the greatness of his accomplishments as admiral of the Ming fleet, despite the fact that he had grown up with a handicap which fortunately few suffer from today: at a very early age he had been castrated. Zheng He seems to symbolize in his person and his achievements the potential for "Third World" unity. He was both a Chinese and a Muslim; and his voyages brought China, Southeast Asia, India, Arabia and Africa together in a vast network of trade, on the eve of European "discovery" of this world. One can only speculate about how strong an alliance against European colonialism could have been forged had the Yong Le Emperor (Zhu Di) not been foolish enough to squander his resources on a senseless war in Vietnam and a lavish new capital in Beijing, thus bringing all his projects, including Zheng He's missions, into disrepute with the Confucian scholar-bureacrats. Levathes' book compares favorably with Edward Dreyer's more recent and stolidly dull academic biography of Zheng He.
Interesting, informative, and factual.......2006-05-18
Unlike the book "1421," Levathes's book sticks with the known facts and provides more details about the Treasure Fleet and Ming China. Levathes did a lot of research and makes a compelling presentation, ending the book with an extensive notes and bibliography section. The text is interspersed with illustrations and photos. It's too bad this book is so hard to find in bookstores and libraries. Get it from Amazon and then donate it to your library (if you can give it up)!
Book Description
The first translation of the full body of ancient Chinese strategic wisdom, including Sun Tzu's Art of War and six other classics. Studied throughout Asia for its insights into decision-making, especially by business people.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent.......2007-09-01
Sawyer knows his subject. He is a master of Chinese warfare and culture. He even teaches you how to pronounce some common Chinese words that we in the west always mispronounce.
The book is great. It covers a lot --- not just The Art of War, though that's included. It is a complete study of the Chinese strategies of war and I recommend it to those interested in this topic.
Great works from an exciting period of history.......2006-07-06
The works in this book are:
1) T'ai Kung's Six Secret Teachings
2) The Methods of Ssu-ma
3) Sun-tzu's Art of War
4) Wu-tzu
5) Wei Liao-tzu
6) Three Strategies of Huang Shih-kung
7) Questions and Replies between T'ang T'ai-tsung and Li Wei-kung
Hope that helps.
My one complaint about this book is that it uses the Wade-Giles transliteration rather than Pinyin, which is what everyone, including China, is using. Wade-Giles is now over 35 years outmoded, and can be very confusing for the uninitiated. Compare Ssu-ma I (Wade-Giles) with Sima Yi (Pinyin). Would you know that they're the same bloke? (If you do, bravo.) I assume this speaks to the age of the translation rather than an editorial choice, but it's pretty annoying that they didn't update it.
If you think you might like this book, but want more of a story than essays/discourses, I recommend 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms.' It's very long, but well-loved in most regions of Asia, and with good reason. Also, search for Zhuge Liang's commentary on 'The Art of War.' It's all on Amazon.
???????????.......2005-12-28
WHAT ARE THE NAMES OF THE OTHER SIX BOOKS
An engaging book.......2004-03-02
I first saw this book at my public library, and loved it. (Evidentally someone else loved it too, 'cause it wandered off and left a few years later.) It holds a great list of books.
Sun Tzu's "Art of War" is in there, but I especially like Tao Tai Kung (or "The secret teachings of the Tai Kung") The most entertaining thing about this work is that it is a beautiful example of a different world view. It was an excellent introduction to an entire philosophy.
(look for surprising parallels twixt this and Adam Smith's "...Wealth of Nations", with an eastern perspective.)
An oustanding addition to any library!.......2001-07-24
In considering Ralph Sawyer's translation of "The Seven Military Classics of Ancient China" one must look at the work from two angles. First, one must consider the quality of the translation, and how well the author has set the historical stage for the piece. Second, one must consider the pieces themselves, and their pertinence to modern strategic thinking.
Regarding the first issue, Sawyer has done a superb job in both his translation, and in his historical research. The prose is easy to read and understand, but the essential, almost poetic, essence of the original language has not been sacrificed. Furthermore, each piece is prefaced by a brief, but detailed, overview of the work including a biography of the author, or possible authors, and a synopsis of the historical context in which the work was created. In addition, the book is heavily footnoted, which allows the reader to fully comprehend each piece, without the primary texts being chopped up.
Regarding the second angle, I was genuinely astonished by how pertinent theses works are to modern military thinking. For such primitive (chronologically, not intellectually) works, they do a superb job of capturing the key elements of strategic thinking: maneuver, logistics, terrain, combined arms and command hierarchy. Moreover, they are extremely sophisticated in their consideration of Grand Strategy and the mobilization of the population. While these works are by no means a blue print for a modern army (the codes of conduct are draconian, to say the least), they undoubtedly provide a framework for the analysis/planning of modern operations.
This is truly a superb work that captures both the philosophical and the practical aspects of some of the most ancient books on the planet. Furthermore, it is a fascinating look at ancient Chinese history. It is truly a must read for anyone interested in military theory or international relations, particularly with China once again ascendant on the world stage.
Book Description
To Nini Karpel, growing up in Vienna during the 1920s was a romantic confection. Whether schussing down ski slopes or speaking of politics in coffee houses, she cherished the city of her birth. But in the 1930s an undercurrent of conflict and hate began to seize the former imperial capital. This struggle came to a head when Hitler took possession of neighboring Germany. Anti-Semitism, which Nini and her idealistic friends believed was impossible in the socially advanced world of Vienna, became widespread and virulent.
The Karpel's Jewish identity suddenly made them foreigners in their own homeland. Tormented, disenfranchised, and with a broken heart, Nini and her family sought refuge in a land seven thousand miles across the world.
Shanghai, China, one of the few countries accepting Jewish immigrants, became their new home and refuge. Stepping off the boat, the Karpel family found themselves in a land they could never have imagined. Shanghai presented an incongruent world of immense wealth and privilege for some and poverty for the masses, with opium dens and decadent clubs as well as rampant disease and a raging war between nations.
Ten Green Bottles is the story of Nini Karpel's struggles as she told it to her daughter Vivian so many years ago. This true story depicts the fierce perseverance of one family, victims of the forces of evil, who overcame suffering of biblical proportion to survive. It was a time when ordinary people became heroes.
Customer Reviews:
Not a must read........2007-03-10
The account of a Jewish familys' descent in Vienna through the Nazi hell to the foreign shores of Shanghai is interesting from an historical perspective. The writing is amateurish with the point of view jumping around and the verb tenses as well. It could have used a good editor.
Disappointing.......2006-08-05
The story of the blind hatred and inhumanity whipped up by the Nazis needs to be told - and told often. But it deserves a more nuanced telling than this single-dimensional presentation. This account is all bright colors (first quarter) and darkness (remainder), with little in between.
What is particularly striking is that the narrator makes no effort to relate to the suffering of Shanghai's indigenous Chinese population. Her flat and parenthetical references to the pervasive poverty, disease and oppression reveal little or no interest in the historical or social context that created such dreadful conditions, not to mention any empathy with the people so afflicted. Its detachment is disturbing. Could it be that one's humanity is so degraded by abuse that one cannot see beyond one's own suffering? Perhaps, but without any attempt at explanation it comes across as heartless indifference.
As a tribute by a daughter to a mother and a family who endured hideous persecution the book is a worthy effort. But in providing any real insights it falls sadly short.
Decadence and Poverty of Wartime Shanghai .......2006-05-10
I thoroughly enjoyed "Ten Green Bottles". Unlike other books on Shanghai of that period, I particularly relished the intimate glimpse of the extreme wealth and decadence that was ongoing alongside the abject poverty of the immigrants that fled Europe. Much is written here of how people of many nations with unimaginable wealth made Shanghai their "sumptuous playground" between the stench and filth of the city.
In particular, the author's description of the Bolero Club through the eyes of Nini, who worked as a hostess there, was so exciting and so descriptive and so alive that I was sure I was in the room with some of the most powerful men and glamorous women of the time. Her detailed description of the opium den next door, a "grand salon" established exclusively for the very rich, is breathtaking.
This book is a must read for anyone who wants to live the Shanghai of World War II from its lows to its highs.
A story that should not be forgotten.......2005-11-13
This story about the experiences of a Viennese Jewish family in Shanghai perfectly fulfills two raison d'etre of books - on the one hand it allows the reader to enter a time-warp machine and be transplanted to another time and another place and vicariously live through the emotional upheavals, the smells, sights, sounds and most importantly the feelings of fear, frustration, Angst and yes, fortunately also joy, of the main characters. Vivian Kaplan is a master of setting the scene and allowing the reader to slip into the protagonist's skin. I have lived and worked in Vienna and also in Northern China (albeit at a much later time) and Vivian's writing rings true. The chapters in the book are like 3-D images conjured up for the reader (and would make a very gripping screenplay). The other raison d'etre of books is to preserve and hand down important happenings and narrate them in a gripping and thought-provoking manner. The manner in which the Jews in Austria and elsewhere were treated by an Austrian madman who managed to come to power in Germany should never be forgotten. More importantly, we all need to be vigilant that such events happen less and less frequently in the history of humankind. Although familiar with the story of displaced Jews from German-speaking countries as I (like the author) am offspring, I was unable to put down the book. What Nini Karpel's mother had to experience in one short lifetime is more than most people should have to live through. The book also helped me understand the initial inertia of many Jews in Vienna to the anti-Semitic flare-up in the 1920s and 30s. "Oh, we've seen this many times, let's just lie low and wait for it to blow over". Writing in the present tense made the story more immediate. However, despite the fact that the book had its share of gruesome scenes, overall the manner in which Nini viewed the world seemed overly rosy-colored and syrupy sweet. The naive tone that permeates the book distracts from the serious situation in which these refugees find themselves. Even a five-year old would know better than to state 'we are awed by the changes in the baby within his first year. Every day he seems to learn some new word...' p.5. Should the book get reprinted, I suggest a German-speaking editor correct some of the German words. The great Ferris wheel in Vienna is no 'Reisenrad' p.77 and the 'Fuhrer' should be spelled 'Fuehrer'. But overall we are better off for having another story capture the senseless suffering human beings will inflict upon one another.
A Very Outstanding Book.......2005-08-05
Ten Green Bottles is one of the most powerful, emotional, fascinating and beautifully written books I have ever read. Where has this author been?
The story begins in the early 1920s in Vienna where a five year old Jewish girl, called Nini, begins to experience what it is to be the youngest of three sisters. It is written in Nini's voice and throughout the book you seem to live every moment of her life as if you were in her skin. You laugh, cry, feel and experience everything that happens to her as if it were happening to you, yet the book is non-fiction.
The story tells of her life in a growing family and the hardships of her mother in raising her children and carrying on their business after her father's death. As Nini grows into her teenage years, your senses are filled with the excitement of Vienna and the thrill of skiing in the mountains nearby. Then the Nazis come and everything changes.
As Jews are now considered vermin, they must flee the city or they will surely die. With the help of a gentile lawyer they are able to leave Vienna for Shanghai. On arriving in this no-man's land with almost no money, they find themselves in the middle of another war between China and Japan. Living in squalor and trying to survive, their life is made even more miserable. Japan, an ally of Germany, forces them and about 20,000 other Jews into a small ghetto with over 100,000 of the poorest Chinese. The story tells of their life and the life of the Jewish community as they try to make it through to the end of the war under the most deplorable conditions imaginable. They are eventually liberated by the Americans and stay until the Communist takeover in the late 1940s when they leave. The story ends with their exceptionally well written arrival in the white winter of Canada where they do not have to fear anymore.
I read a lot and to me this book was a literary masterpiece. I also learned about a very interesting part of the Holocaust that I had not known.
Book Description
Praise FOR Gerald Astor
"No one does oral history better than Gerald Astor. . . . Great reading."
–Stephen Ambrose on The Mighty Eighth
"Gerald Astor has proven himself a master. Here, World War II is brought to life through the hammer blows of their airborne triumphs and fears."
–J. Robert Moskin, author of Mr. Truman’s War, on The Mighty Eighth
"Astor captures the fire and passion of those tens of thousands of U.S. airmen who flew through the inferno that was the bomber war over Europe."
–Stephen Coonts on The Mighty Eighth
"Oral history at its finest."
–The Washington Post on Operation Iceberg
"Quick and well-paced, this will please even the most jaded of readers."
–Army magazine on Battling Buzzards
"A stout volume by a distinguished historian of the modern military makes a major contribution on its subject."
–Booklist on The Right to Fight (starred Editor’s Choice)
"Today, as we lose the veterans of World War II at an alarming rate, we must not lose sight of their sacrifices or of the leaders who took them into battle. Astor, an acclaimed military historian, provides an in-depth look at one of the war’s most successful division combat commanders, Maj. Gen. Terry Allen. . . . This well-written portrait makes for enjoyable reading."
–Library Journal on Terrible Terry Allen
Customer Reviews:
very informative and an eye opener! it reveal much of present geopolitical landscapes of burma india and chinese frontiers.......2006-12-12
this book is a precursor of the present political landscapes of burma and india. most specifically burma. that the present bandits landlords of the countries mountain lands are dominated by karens tribal rebels who actually support their existence with poppy production and traffics which actually are encouraged if not promoted by renegades ex kuomintang generals and soldiers who forrayed into the country thrun the frontiers during worid war II. A MUST READ for all who are interested in current situation in SOUTH ASIA!
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