Great Books of China: From Ancient Times to the Present - Hardcover

Frances Wood, a well-known historian of China and Chinese culture, was for many years head of the Chinese collections at the British Library. She has lectured widely, created exhibitions, and written a number of books including China's First Emperor and His Terracotta Warriors, The Silk Road, and the Blue Guide to China.

“In...Great Books of China, Frances Wood, a distinguished former curator at the British Library...sets out to fill a gap in Western understanding that is greater than the understanding itself. Her enthusiasm for this selection of key works dating from antiquity to the mid-20th century is catching...[this] is not an anthology of extracts but rather an introduction to their contents―a starting point rather than an end in itself...Some of her choices will feel familiar at least as ideas...There’s much else that’s charming, entertaining or simply quirky...the perfect vade mecum to Chinese writing...” ―THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

"An eminent Sinologist synopsizes and comments upon several dozen of China’s most important literary works and in doing so offers a concise yet penetrating cultural history of the Middle Kingdom...Wood’s survey invites readers to consider each work not in isolation but rather as a lens into the vastness and variety of Chinese culture...her expertise in readers' advisory is on full display."―BOOKLIST (starred review)

“The 66 books introduced here by distinguished scholar and author Wood...range in time from antiquity to the present...The entries are uniformly informative and well written...This is an attractive and accessible book...Highly recommended.”―CHOICE

Praise for Frances Wood’s China’s First Emperor and His Terracotta Warriors
“...a text that is wonderfully descriptive not only archaeologically but in reassessing the emperor...”―LIBRARY JOURNAL
“...[Wood’s] close reading of these sources offers fresh insight into a little-known figure and his kingdom...”―PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
“This is the first biography of the first emperor of China...[an] interesting and informative work...”―BOOKLIST