|
The Ford of Heaven is a childhood memoir of expatriate life in Tientsin (Tianjin), one of China’s treaty ports, between the wars; it is a marvellous book for anyone interested in China. Its picture of China and its people seventy to eighty years ago is moving, fascinating and exciting. Rival warlords fought for control, the elusive White Lotus Society weaved its plots and Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalists vied with the Reds, against a background of foreign, particularly Japanese, intervention. Then came the second World War, which culminated in the eventual triumph of Communism, under the leadership of Mao Tse-tung. On the face of it, the book paints a picture vastly different from the China of today; yet, scratch the surface and one finds that the underlying character of the people and the country is in many ways little changed. It is a great read!
|
United States | 
United Kingdom | 
Canada