Great Books of China

Great Books of China invites readers to discover-or rediscover-some of the major achievements of Chinese culture and civilization. The literature of China remains largely unknown in the West, yet it offers much insight into Chinese life. The long continuity of Chinese culture means that texts created more than two thousand years ago are still part of the education and background of today's China. Great Books of China introduces outstanding works of various genres, from fiction, drama, and poetry to history, science, and travel; they were written by philosophers and artists, government officials and scholars, by men and women across many centuries and from every part of China. These great books are presented in their historic, cultural, and social context, with a focused summary of content and author. Beginning with some of the Confucian and Daoist classics and ending with modern fiction, Great Books of China features famous novels including The Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan) , Journey to the West (Xiyou ji), and Dream of the Red Chamber (Hongloumeng); celebrated dramas such as The Story of the Lute (Pipa ji) and The Peach Blossom Fan (Taohua shan); poetry from ancient times and the "golden age" of the Tang to the last years of imperial China; renowned historic manuals on Chinese painting, on the construction of Chinese gardens, and on a carpenter's varied tasks; major texts describing Chinese history, the military exploits of ancient generals, and the legendary journeys of Buddhist monks; and works by a number of modern writers including Lu Xun, Ding Ling, and Lao She. Concise, provocative, and illuminating, Great Books of China introduces the literature of one of the world's most significant cultures and helps us understand the China of the present and the past.

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".

Introduction Book of Songs * Shi jing (c. 1000-c. 600 BCE) AUTHOR UNKNOWN Book of Changes * Yi jing (first millennium BCE) AUTHOR UNKNOWN Classic of the Way and of Virtue * Daode jing LAOZI (c. sixth century BCE) Zhuangzi ZHUANGZI (c. fourth century BCE) Analects * Lun yu CONFUCIUS (c. 551-c. 479 BCE) Mencius * Mengzi MENCIUS (c. 372-c. 289 BCE) Master Sun's Art of War * Sunzi bingfa SUN WU (c. 544-c. 496 BCE) Almanac * Tongshu AUTHOR UNKNOWN Proper Ritual * Yi li (Western [or Former] Han/206 BCE-9 CE) AUTHOR UNKNOWN The Grand Scribe's Records * Shi ji SIMA QIAN (c. 150-c. 86 BCE) Nineteen Old Poems * Gu shi shijiu shou (Eastern [or Later] Han/25-220 CE) AUTHOR UNKNOWN Records of the Buddhist Kingdoms * Foguo ji FAXIAN (c. 337-c. 422 CE) Lotus Sutra * Saddharmapundarika sutra (translation into Chinese third to fifth centuries CE) AUTHOR UNKNOWN Diamond Sutra * Vajracchedikaprajnaparamita sutra (translation into Chinese fifth century CE) AUTHOR UNKNOWN Poems LI BAI (701-762) Poems DU FU (712-770) Poems LI SHANGYIN (c. 813-c. 858) The Story of Yingying * Yingying zhuan YUAN ZHEN (779-831) Master Dong's Western Chamber Romance * Dong shi Xi xiang ji zhugongtiao DONG JIEYUAN (flourished c. 1189-c. 1208) Romance of the Western Chamber * Xi xiang ji WANG SHIFU (c. 1250-c. 1337) Poems LI QINGZHAO (1084-c. 1150) The Orphan of Zhao * Zhao shi guer Attributed to JI JUNXIAN (c. thirteenth century) Three-Character Classic * Sanzi jing Attributed to WANG YINGLIN (1223-1296) Twenty-Four Exemplars of Filial Piety * Ershisi xiao Attributed to GUO JUJING (1260-1368) The Water Margin * Shuihu zhuan Attributed to SHI NAIAN (c. 1296-c. 1372) or LUO GUANZHONG (c. 1330-c. 1400) The Story of the Three Kingdoms * Sanguo zhi Attributed to LUO GUANZHONG (c. 1330-c. 1400) The Story of the Lute * Pipa ji GAO MING (c. 1305-c. 1370) The Classic of Lu Ban * Lu Ban jing (fifteenth century) AUTHOR UNKNOWN Journey to the West * Xiyou ji Attributed to WU CHENG'EN (c. 1500-c. 1582) Plum in a Golden Vase * Jinpingmei (c. 1582-96) AUTHOR UNKNOWN The Carnal Prayer Mat * Rou putuan Attributed to LI YU (1610-1680) Travels of Xu Xiake * Xu Xiake youji XU XIAKE (1587-1641) Tracks of a Wild Goose in the Snow * Hongxuan yinyuan tuji LINQING (1791-1846) The Craft of Gardens * Yuan ye JI CHENG (1582-c. 1642) Exploitation of the Works of Nature * Tiangong kaiwu SONG YINGXING (1587-c. 1666) Mustard Seed Garden Manual of Painting * Jieziyuan huazhuan (1679-1701) AUTHOR UNKNOWN; Preface by LI YU (1610-1680) The Peach Blossom Fan * Taohua shan KONG SHANREN (1648-1718) Poems/Essays YUAN MEI (1716-1798) Unofficial History of the Grove of Literati * Rulin waishi WU JINGZI (1701-1754) Three Hundred Tang Poems * Tang shi sanbai shou SUN ZHU (1722-1778) Strange Stories from the Liao Studio * Liaozhai zhiyi PU SONGLING (1640-1715) Dream of the Red Chamber * Hongloumeng CAO XUEQIN (c. 1715-1763) Six Records of a Floating Life * Fusheng liu ji SHEN FU (1763-after 1807) Poems QIU JIN (c. 1875-1907) The Travels of Lao Can * Lao Can youji LIU E (1857-1909) "My Old Home" (in Call to Arms) * "Gu xiang" (in Nahan) Old Tales Retold * Gushi xinbian LU XUN (1881-1936) Miss Sophie's Diary * Shafei nüshi riji DING LING (c. 1904-1986) Mr. Ma and Son * Er Ma Camel Xiangzi * Luotuo xiangzi Beneath the Red Banner * Zheng hongqi xia LAO SHE (1899-1966) Family * Jia BA JIN (1904-2005) Midnight * Ziye MAO DUN (1896-1981) Autobiography of a Girl Soldier * Yige nübing de zizhuan XIE BINGYING (1906-2000) The Man Who Came Home on a Snowy Night * Fengxue ye guiren WU ZUGUANG (1917-2003) Little Black's Marriage * Xiao Erhei jiehun ZHAO SHULI (1906-1970) Biography of the First Ming Emperor * Zhu Yuanzhang zhuan WU HAN (1909-1969) Fortress Besieged * Wei cheng QIAN ZHONGSHU (1910-1998) Memories of South Peking * Chengnan jiushi LIN HAIYIN (1918-2001) From Emperor to Citizen * Wode qian ban sheng PUYI (1906-1967) Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung * Mao Zhuxi yulu MAO ZEDONG (1893-1976) Half a Lifelong Romance * Bansheng yuan Lust, Caution * Si, rong ZHANG AILING (EILEEN CHANG) (1920-1995) Mayor Yin * Yin xianzhang CHEN RUOXI (CHEN JO-HSI) (born 1938) Six Chapters from a Cadre School Life * Ganxiao liu ji YANG JIANG (1911-2016) Stones of the Wall * Ren a ren! DAI HOUYING (1938-1996) Chronology Notes Index