Ethnic China Living Books
Since I started with the page more than 10 years ago I have been posting some book reviews and news. Now that information is going to be expanded with the small summaries that I make (sometimes) for myself after reading a book or an article, or some of the notes that I take after the readings. In some interesting books that I have not been able to read or of which I do not keep any notes, I may put the text provided by the publisher.
I think all readers will be able to distinguish when it is a personal opinion, when it is an excerpt from the work, and when it is material provided by the publisher.
I have organized the material in the following sections. If you think something is missing, please write to me at the address below.
– Art
– Buddhism
– Classics of Chinese culture
– Daoism or Taoism
– Ethnic groups
– Folklore
– Gender, women and matriarchy
– History
– Idiom and language
– Journeys and travels
– Literature and poetry
– Myths, tales and legends
– Novels
– Orientalisms. Novels set in China.
– Philosophy
– Qi Gong, taiji and health techniques.
– Religion
– Society
– Tibet
– Zoom on politics and current affairs
LAST POSTS ABOUT BOOKS ON CHINA
The Chinese King Kong
The Chinese King Kong The tale “The White Ape” narrates the adventures of gigantic ape that resembles King Kong in many aspects: its gigantic size, its big strength and his liking for human women. Here is the story: In the Liang Dynasty, troops were once sent to the...
Dangerous women in China, another vision of the Chinese history
Dangerous women in China, another vision of the Chinese history. Here are some excerpts from the Preface of the author. This is a study in the private language of women. In traditional China, such a lan guage was given voice by female outsiders: by geishas, grannies,...
The book Hanzi for HSK 1-3 now available in Greek language
The book “Hanzi for HSK 1-3” now available in Greek language This April, the translation of my book Hanzi for HSK 1-3 has been published in the main digital bookstores in Greece. The Greek version of this book, from the pen of Stefanos Karampalis, has been one of...
Buddhist Monks in Medieval China
Buddhist Monks in Medieval China That is the subject of John Kieschnick's book. The book analyzes the contents of the three collections of biographies of monks that became famous in medieval China, through them he tries to give us first a characterization of the...
Manual of Taoist Architecture
Manual of Taoist Architecture There are some illustrated books that produce in the reader a contradictory feeling, because the images that explain what the text is about are sometimes accompanied by an exposition of ideas that is too superficial. Therefore the reader...
How the presence of goddesses paves the way for female power
How the presence of goddesses paved the way for female power One of the theses of my book Matriarchy in China: mothers, goddesses, queens and shamans (Madrid, 2011) was to assert that the presence of goddesses with prominent roles in a culture could signal the past or...
The Adventures of the Mad Monk Ji Gong
The Adventures of the Mad Monk Ji Gong The past few days I have been reading a novel about China's most famous rogue monk. About the Monk Ji Gong, better known for his fondness for wine and meat than for his religious merits. His kindness and continuous desire to help...
The Stories of Beijing of David Kidd
The Stories of Beijing of David Kidd This book narrates some events in the life of an aristocratic family during the years in which China ended its traditional history and became a communist country. The author arrived in Beijing as an English teacher two years...
The Spirits are drunk. Comparative approaches to Chinese religion
Paper, Jordan. The Spirits are drunk. Comparative approaches to Chinese religion. SUNY Press. 1995 This is a completely original book on the religions of China. Instead of following the repetitive mantra of the existence of three religions and describing them more or...
Chinese characters
Perhaps Chinese is not the most widely spoken language on Earth
Perhaps Chinese is not the most widely spoken language on Earth Ever since I can remember, I've heard that Chinese is the most spoken language on Earth, and I've always thought it was true. But while looking up some information on the matter, I was surprised to find...
Ethnic groups
Two Creation Myths of the Kucong Minority
Two Creation Myths of the Kucong Minority[1] The Creation of Heaven and Earth[2] In the era of chaos, there was neither heaven nor earth, and no people existed. There were no rivers or mountains, trees or plants, beasts or birds. The world was a dark void. A group of...
Chinese culture
Perhaps Chinese is not the most widely spoken language on Earth
Perhaps Chinese is not the most widely spoken language on Earth Ever since I can remember, I've heard that Chinese is the most spoken language on Earth, and I've always thought it was true. But while looking up some information on the matter, I was surprised to find...