Oracle Bones: A Journey Through Time in China (P.S.) | Peter Hessler

Oracle Bones: A Journey Through Time in China (P.S.) | Peter Hessler | hard to put it down

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Oracle Bones: A Jo...

	Oracle Bones: A Journey Through Time in China (P.S.) Peter Hessler Harper Perennial, 2007 - 528 pages average customer review:based on 22 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

A century ago, outsiders saw China as a place where nothing ever changes. Today the country has become one of the most dynamic regions on earth. In Oracle Bones, Peter Hessler explores the human side of China's transformation, viewing modern-day China and its growing links to the Western world through the lives of a handful of ordinary people. In a narrative that gracefully moves between the ancient and the present, the East and the West, Hessler captures the soul of a country that is undergoing a momentous change before our eyes.

Cannot Recommend This Book Highly Enough

This is an excellent book that should be read by anyone curious about present-day China and the economic juggernaut that they have become. The author looks at their situation not from the macro side (the big picture - China's economy is thus and thus, growing from this to that in X amount of time, etc.) but rather he looks at it from the micro side: through the stories of everyday folks who are working in this new economy, many of whom he knows very well. Some lived through the Cultural Revolution and have a lot of baggage left over from that experience, while others were born after all of that and have grown up in the post-Mao era when China finally woke up and embraced capitalism (in its own way). It is one of the best examples of narrative non-fiction that I have read, and was hard to put down.

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hard to put it down

I've read it before going to sleep and more than a few times it made stay up later than I wanted. The book is well written, without artful gimmicks (it doesn't try hard to be literary), but also without the cliches and boring turns of phrases one sees in modern 'reporting'.
The book weaves the past and the present. The past appears in the form of the oracle bones that belonged to the Shang dynasty. Hessler talks to old scholars, people who dedicated their lives to the study of ancient Chinese history; he finds out how their lives were affected by the Communists and ruminates on the importance of writing for Chinese culture.
The 'present' part of the book looks at ordinary people and the way they lead their lives in this fast-changing society. Hessler is clearly aware that this is not a free society, but he doesn't hit you over the head with it: instead, what he cares about is these people - their stories, aspirations, dreams. Some of them are former students and friends, and he doesn't shy away from getting involved in their lives.
All in all a pleasure to read.

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An Honest View of Today's China

I really loved Peter Hessler's Rivertown and found Oracle Bones just as enjoyable. The author's style of writing is original and surprising, at unexpected points of his books. I studied in Taiwan in the mid-70's and found Peter Hessler's descriptions of the Chinese to be very similar to my own experiences. I get the feeling that there are others who are finding his writing just as enjoyable - a few days ago I was in the Denver airport and saw a copy of The New Yorker with his article about the Olympics listed at the top. He is a wonderful writer and anyone picking up this book will finish it knowing quite a bit more than he did before starting it.

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Love it

I enjoyed the book very much because author use his point of view to describe his journey through his students, friends and travel through out the China abut the feeling toward past, today and the future of China.

An enjoyable read

I brought this book with me when I moved to Shanghai, China and eventually got around to reading after 2 months of living here. I have previously studied many of the topics he had touch base upon in his book, from the history of oracle bones, to the current politics (such as Xinjiang's struggle for independence). I even took a class once (ancient history of china) where a professor had criticized the book for being misinformed on its information regarding the oracle bones. All this considered, I kept an open mind when reading Mr. Hessler's novel and ended up enjoying it greatly.

I enjoyed the fact that Mr. Hessler took a different route when writing this book. He focused a lot on the individual stories of Chinese citizens, while sliding in factual events, history, and culture. This made the book as enjoyable as a fiction novel. Most of the facts in the book were previously known to me, so in some ways, I was a bit disappointed (looking forward to enhance my knowledge on the region). But like I said, it was the individual people he met on his journeys through China that made the book a page-turner. I would suggest this book for anyone who has any interest in China, or just a good story about a different culture. If you are in the Asian/Chinese studies field you may find this book a little below your level. Although you may, like me, end up enjoying it for what it is, entertaining!

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

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