China – Stanfords Blog

‘In the Footsteps of Du Fu’ with Michael Wood: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2024

From Destinations: The Holiday & Travel Show in London’s Olympia, The Stanfords Travel Writers Festival welcomes the internationally acclaimed historian, film-maker and broadcaster, and the author of several bestselling books, Michael Wood. He talks to Ann Morgan about his new book ‘In the Footsteps of Du Fu’, a beautifully illustrated travelogue, chronicling the life and work of one of the world greatest poets.

Du Fu (712-70) is one of China’s greatest poets. His career coincided with periods of famine, war and huge upheaval, yet his secular philosophical vision, combined with his empathy for the common folk of his nation, ensured that he soon became revered. Like Shakespeare or Dante, his poetry resonates in a timeless manner that ensures it is always relevant and offers something new to the modern generation.

Jung Chang: Big Sister, Little Sister, Red Sister: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Jung Chang reveals the lives of three extraordinary women who helped shape twentieth-century China. As the country battled through a hundred years of wars, revolutions and seismic transformations, the three Soong sisters from Shanghai were at the centre of power, and each of them left an indelible mark on history. Their story takes us on a sweeping journey from Canton to Hawaii to New York, from exiles’ quarters in Japan and Berlin to secret meeting rooms in Moscow, and from the compounds of the Communist elite in Beijing to the corridors of power in democratic Taiwan. Followed by a Q&A with Julia Wheeler.

Big Sister, Little Sister, Red Sister by Jung Chang

Book Launch: China in Drag

If, like us, you’ve often wondered what it might be like to travel around China with your cross-dressing language teacher, China in Drag by Michael Bristow is a perfect addition to your reading list. Ok, so we hadn’t wondered it at all until we hosted the launch of this book last Wednesday, but now it’s all we want to do. Continue reading Book Launch: China in Drag