The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom

April 24, 2017
Perkins does not try to dramatize one or another event, plays no vocal games with humor or irony, and makes no effort to distinguish the voices of the innumerable Chinese and American players in this history of U.S.-China relations from the 18th century to the Obama administration. The book is strongest when focusing on America’s contributions to China, but Pomfret gives China some credit for cooperative periods and blames both countries for the recurring love-hate pattern in their relationship over the centuries. Reader Perkins offers a clear, well-paced, and perfectly serviceable rendering of Pomfret’s comprehensive book. A Holt hardcover.

September 15, 2016
An in-depth look at the historically deep and mutually influential relationship between the United States and China.Since the American Revolution, the Middle Kingdom (China) and Meiguo, the "Beautiful Country" (America), have enjoyed both a rich exchange of culture and trade and bitter enmity, especially during the early communist era. In this thoroughgoing study that moves from the revolutionary era to the present, former Washington Post foreign correspondent Pomfret (Chinese Lessons: Five Classmates and the Story of the New China, 2006), who was recently a Fulbright Senior Scholar in Beijing, delves into the historical relations between the two and offers a fresh appraisal of each nation's contributions to the other. The author asserts that the U.S. has had a significant role in China's rise, reaching back to when the U.S. provided China an early market for its coveted "china," tea, and drapery. On the other hand, in China, many Americans, such as John Perkins Cushing and Franklin Roosevelt's grandfather Warren Delano, made their fortunes in pelts, silks, tea, opium, and other commodities. By the mid-19th century, missionaries had a huge influence on the Chinese, as China represented the big prize in missionary work during the series of Great Awakenings that swept America. Pomfret credits the early missionaries, especially women like Adele Fielde, with bringing Western medicine, education, and law to China and helping to outlaw infanticide and foot binding. The building of the First Transcontinental Railroad required enormous labor, and the Chinese stepped in where Americans would not; however, after the Civil War and the demobilization of soldiers moving West in search of work, the tables turned on the Chinese in the form of pogroms and anti-Chinese immigration legislation. In this highly detailed narrative, Pomfret moves chronologically through these developments, ably fleshing out the characters involved. Regarding recent events, he is not uncritical of China's cyberspying and aggression in the South China Sea. An occasionally too-dense but impressively wide-ranging history demonstrating that the U.S.-China relationship began decades before Richard Nixon arrived on the scene.

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October 15, 2016
Pomfret (Chinese Lessons, 2006) offers a panoramic view of U.S.-Chinese interactions, emphasizing both constant motion and consistent mutual dependence. His narrative begins in 1776, and from the start, we see two nations infatuated with each other: the Chinese, seeing an ally against European influence, and the Americans, seeing the possibility of vast fortunes selling products to the vast Chinese market. But high hopes led to disappointments, resentment, and mistrust. Though Chinese workers built much of the infrastructure of the American West, discrimination and racism prevailed. Even though China was a crucial ally in WWII, diplomatic relations remained frosty. Pomfret's narrative stands out for his exploring not just political and diplomatic but also cultural aspects of the relationship, as missionaries and merchants import American arts into China, and China begins to feature more prominently in American film, literature, cuisine, spirituality, and innovation. If a pattern emerges, suggests Pomfret, it may be something like the Buddhist notion of reincarnation: a cycle of highs and lows; moments of enchantment and disgust; a long history filled with new beginnings.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)

June 1, 2016

Currently on a Fulbright Senior Scholar's grant in Beijing, Pomfret is a former Washington Post correspondent who has won honors (e.g., the Osborne Elliot Prize) for his coverage of Asia and wrote the best-selling Chinese Lessons: Five Classmates and the Story of the New China. All of which suggests that he should be spot-on in this history of the relationship between the United States and China since the Revolutionary War. It's revealing to see how much there is to say--just check the page count. With library marketing.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 1, 2016

Journalist Pomfret (Chinese Lessons) offers a comprehensive exposition of U.S.-China relations from the birth of the American nation to the present, with extensive coverage of the World War II and Cold War periods. The author illuminates this long and complicated relationship by examining the colorful stories of the merchants, missionaries, soldiers, diplomats, students, athletes, etc., who have bridged the divide between the two countries. Included are accounts of people such as Howqua, the Chinese merchant whose investments funded America's early railroads; and Frederick Townsend Ward, an American adventurer who became an officer in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) army and successfully defended Shanghai against rebels. Readers will learn how both nations have contributed to each other's development. For example, in the 19th century the profitable China trade was a motivating factor in America's westward expansion, and in recent years China has successfully implemented American expertise to improve its air traffic safety. VERDICT A delightful read that is essential for anyone with an interest in the topic. While it covers similar terrain as James Bradley's The China Mirage, Pomfret's work is far more detailed and offers different interpretations on key issues. [See Prepub Alert, 5/2/16.]--Joshua Wallace, Tarleton State Univ. Lib. Stephenville, TX

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2016

Journalist Pomfret (Chinese Lessons) offers a comprehensive exposition of U.S.-China relations from the birth of the American nation to the present, with extensive coverage of the World War II and Cold War periods. The author illuminates this long and complicated relationship by examining the colorful stories of the merchants, missionaries, soldiers, diplomats, students, athletes, etc., who have bridged the divide between the two countries. Included are accounts of people such as Howqua, the Chinese merchant whose investments funded America's early railroads; and Frederick Townsend Ward, an American adventurer who became an officer in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) army and successfully defended Shanghai against rebels. Readers will learn how both nations have contributed to each other's development. For example, in the 19th century the profitable China trade was a motivating factor in America's westward expansion, and in recent years China has successfully implemented American expertise to improve its air traffic safety. VERDICT A delightful read that is essential for anyone with an interest in the topic. While it covers similar terrain as James Bradley's The China Mirage, Pomfret's work is far more detailed and offers different interpretations on key issues. [See Prepub Alert, 5/2/16.]--Joshua Wallace, Tarleton State Univ. Lib. Stephenville, TX

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.