Synopses & Reviews
Reaktionand#8217;s new CityScopes series consists of concise, illustrated guides that provide a social and urban history from a cityand#8217;s beginnings to the present day. Written by authors with unique and intimate knowledge of each city, these books offer fascinating vignettes on the quintessential and the quirky. In the first book of the series, Linda Jaivin explores a city at the heart of one of the worldand#8217;s oldest civilizations and the capital of its newest superpowerand#151;Beijing. In Chinaand#8217;s central city, Jaivin finds thousands of years of history dating back to our ancestors, a story that includes dynastic empires, sieges, massacres, rebellions, and political spectacle.
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Recounting the lively history of the city, Jaivin discovers the Peking Man and the capitaland#8217;s many legendary incarnations, such as the Cambaluc that Marco Polo wrote about in awe. She reveals it to be full of charismatic personalities and dramatic events, a place that has produced some of Chinaand#8217;s most iconic works of literature, theater, and music. She also offers thought-provoking essays on contemporary topics ranging from the elemental problems of air and water to the vibrant art scene and the architectural adventurism of the cityand#8217;s and#147;hyperbuildings.and#8221; Generously illustrated, this guide provides helpful maps and suggested itineraries as well as practical recommendations for hotels, restaurants, museums, and other sites.
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Taking readers to lakeshores, down into the subway, and around the bustling art districts,and#160;Beijingand#160;is the ultimate introduction to this extraordinary city for travelers and armchair explorers alike.
Review
"This is a timely publication, appropriate for the serious reader who would like to understand the social history of Beijing and get an insight into some of its contemporary urban problems. . .The book is well written and will engage the inquisitive reader."--Jeffrey F. Meyer,
China Review International "In an engaging style and enlightening narrative,
Beijing: From Imperial Capital to Olympic City, tells the fascinating story of how Beijing...made the transition from China's most enduring imperial capital to a center of international commerce in the twenty-first century, as well as the site of the 2008 World Olympics."--Merle Goldman, Professor Emerita of Chinese History, Boston University, and co-author of
An Intellectual History of Modern China "This book is a unique excursion through a great past and present, neither misleading the beginner nor disappointing the expert. Indeed, the combination of lucidity, conciseness and deft selection of detail is an amazing accomplishment. The city of Beijing is brilliantly conjured by this book--in time, in space, in humanity, and in significance."--Pamela Kyle Crossley, Professor of History, Dartmouth College, and author of The Manchus (1997) and co-author of Global Society: The World since 1900 (2007) "Useful and applicable to all levels... Recommended." —CHOICE "A treat even for the lay reader." —Simon Kuper, Author of Football Against the Enemy
Review
and#8220;With intelligence and wit,
Beijing is the perfect traveling companion for visitors old and new. At last, a book to carry on all of your wandering through this incomparable city.and#8221;
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and#8220;Linda Javin writes with feeling, wit, and great insight on the history of Beijing, bringing to life the great cityand#8217;s many splendors.and#8221;and#160;
Review
and#8220;Cityscopes new guides take a different tack, weighted towards in-depth social and urban history. Its Beijing and Buenos Aires guides will fully arm visitors with context as well as must-sees.and#8221;and#160;
Synopsis
Few world cities have a record as long, as fascinating, or as well-documented as Beijing's. A capital almost continuously for more than a thousand years, the city has been Khubilai Khan's Mongol headquarters, home to emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the main stage for Communist-era achievements and upheavals. Beijing is the first book in English to trace this vibrant city's history from its earliest days to the present. It highlights recent changes in the city as its more than fifteen million people live through record-level economic growth and intensive preparations for the 2008 Olympics. Focusing on the lives of ordinary residents and rulers alike, the authors examine the controversial destruction of historic districts as well as the construction of new residential and business districts and Olympic venues. Extensive photographs and paintings, many not previously published, offer a window onto Beijing not only in major phases of its past, but also in its startlingly different present. Compelling and revealing, Beijing arrives just in time for the city's turn in the Olympic spotlight.
Synopsis
Beijing is an intimate and informed portrait of a city at the centre of one of the worldand#8217;s oldest civilizations and the capital of one of its newest superpowers. For hundreds of thousands of years, humans and their ancestorsand#151;Peking Man among themand#151;have lived here. For three and a half thousand eventful years, cities have risen and fallen in this place, five of them the capitals of dynastic empires. Among these legendary incarnations is the Cambaluc about which Marco Polo wrote in awe. For centuries, the stage for sieges, massacres, rebellions, and political spectacle, Beijing has produced some of Chinaand#8217;s greatest and most iconic works of literature, theatre, and music.
At the bookand#8217;s heart is a concise, lively history of the city, full of big and charismatic personalities and dramatic events. Thought-provoking essays on present-day topics ranging from the elemental problems of water and air to the vibrant art scene and the architectural adventurism of the cityand#8217;s and#147;hyperbuildingsand#8221; take the reader to the shores of the cityand#8217;s lakes, down into its subway system and into the bustling art districts. Generously illustrated and containing a number of useful listings, Beijing is the ultimate introduction to this extraordinary city for travelers and general readers alike.
Linda Jaivin has been a regular visitor and occasional resident of Beijing since 1980. Fluent in Chinese, she brings to Beijing not only her love of the city but a background in Chinese history, a keen eye, and the assured pen of a widely published essayist and novelist.
About the Author
Lillian M. Li is Professor of History, Swarthmore College. Alison J. Dray-Novey is Professor of History, College of Notre Dame of Maryland. Haili Kong is Professor of Chinese Language, Literature, and Film, Swarthmore College.
Table of Contents
Prologue
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History
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1. Wild Years
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2. Khanbalik
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3. The Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)
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4. The Qing Dynastyand#160; (1644-1911)
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5. The Republic, Japanese Occupation and Civil War (1912-1949)
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6. Revolution (1949-1976)
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7. Reform: The First Decades (1976-2007)
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8. Ringing in the New
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The City Today
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In the Shadow of the Drum Tower
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The Dragonand#8217;s Vein
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and#145;Chinese Townand#8217;
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The Circle Line
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The Thirsty City
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On the Art Trail
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The Nest, the Cube, the Underpants and the Egg
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A Taste of the City
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The Princeand#8217;s Garden
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Listings
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Chronology
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References
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Suggested Reading and Viewing
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Acknowledgements
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Photo Acknowledgements
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Index