Books & Podcasts on China
I made this page because I’m just very interested in China (obviously), but also because I think it can be difficult for people living in the West, including myself, to get an accurate picture of what happening there, and to see from a non-Western centric perspective. I’d love to spend more time living in China someday, and maybe I could even contribute a little by writing a blog or something.
So, on this list, Peter Hessler’s trilogy on China are amazing. His books are about ordinary Chinese people, written from Peter’s personal experiences as a teacher and journalist, and with a rare kind of sensitivity and open-mindedness. Kissinger’s On China is written through the perspective of American foreign policy, they’re also very good and have a more global perspective. I read Jung Chang’s Wild Swans many years ago, and thought it was a good way to learn about China’s modern era through a personal story.
The podcasts by David Harvey are more focused on China’s political ideology and economics. They were an eye-opener for me because when I first saw them I hadn’t come across any serious attempt at analysing and understanding China’s path towards socialism – it’s usually not talked about because it’s not the model we have in the West. Later, I discovered Chinese Whispers which I find quite insightful, they interview people in China and give interesting perspectives on various topics. China In Context is run by SOAS, they’re quite good too. Listen to a few you’ll find they have a particular stance, which is always good to bear in mind. Restate Chinese Modern History was a bestseller book in China before it became an audiobook. It’s only available in Chinese, but I have an idea someday to translate and read it aloud. That would be quite fun and worthwhile. I think it’s very difficult to understand the Chinese perspective without understanding its modern period (in Chinese history, marked from the First Opium War in 1840, to the establishment of the PRC in 1949), so history is important.
Books
River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze – Peter Hessler (#1 China Trilogy)
Oracle Bones: A Journey Between China’s Past and Present – Peter Hessler (#2 China Trilogy)
Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory – Peter Hessler (#3 China Triology)
Other Rivers: A Chinese Education – Peter Hessler
On China – Henry Kissinger
Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China – Jung Chang
Podcasts
Selected Episodes on China – David Harvey’s Anti-Capitalist Chronicles
Chinese Whispers – The Spectator
China In Context – SOAS China Institute
重说中国近代史 (Restate Chinese Modern History) – 张鸣 (Zhang Ming), read by 王者 (Wang Zhe)
