Life Along the Silk Road

This book is presented with different tales told by different people living along the Silk Road between 750 and 1000. The people e.g. A courtesan, merchant, monk, princess, soldier all have a different perspective. There is much detail to be found in the writing and I found that I needed to read it more than once and tales could be read on there own without much trouble.

This book was very interesting. It really brought the Silk Road to life. I loved reading about various aspects of Silk Road life through different people's perspectives. I especially liked the inclusion of several women's perspectives.

WHITFIELD WONDERFULLY CONJURES UP IMAGES OF TRADERS,MONKS,SOLDIERS AND OTHERS,AS THEY LEAD THEIR DAILY LIVES IN THE MOST REMOTE REGIONS OF ASIA. INDEED, HOW MANY HISTORIANS COULD RETRACE An EIGHTH CENTURY BATTLE BETWEEN THE CHINESE AND TIBETANS IN THE REMOTE WAKHAN VALLEY HIGH IN THE AFGHAN PAMIRS.

The period of the Middle and Late Tang, from around 700 to 900, is one of the most facinating eras of Chinese hisotry. In particular the An Lushan rebellion, around 750, brought about a change from an outward looking world culture to a gradually shrinking Chinese view of the world. Few good or lively books have been written about this period. Susan Whitfield has portrayed the period by a reconstruction of the life and times of ten individuals, all of them historical and ranging from a humble monk and soldier to a top salesman and a princess. At some pages, the reader may feel transported by a time machine: one hears the sounds, smells the smells and hears the multilingual crowds in the capital of Chang'an or the various desert posts. One major quality of this book is that it is not written solely from a Chinese point of view, but includes many details of the customs and perceptions of the peoples of Central Asia. The author has clearly digested a wealth of historical data and translated those into a book which one would like to read in one sitting - which is an inhuman undertaking given the sheer joy and shock of all the little anecdotes, background facts and human insights. No previous knowledge of Chinese history is necessary to relish these stories.