Between Heaven and Earth: A History of Chinese Writing [Paperback]

Shi Bo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 18, 2003

The characters used in Chinese writing are not letters but stylized ideographs, each with its own history. The development of Chinese writing is linked to the history of China's emperors, who commissioned new styles of writing with which to record their victories. In Between Heaven and Earth, master calligrapher Shi Bo gives a fascinating overview of the evolution of seven seminal Chinese writing styles starting in the seventeenth century BCE. He also introduces the reader to the calligrapher's art, including its materials and techniques. This gift-quality, two-color book is abundantly illustrated with archival material and the author's original calligraphy and will appeal to readers interested in Chinese language, history, and calligraphy.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Shi Bo has organized calligraphy expositions in Bejing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong and has taught the art of Chinese writing internationally. By approaching calligraphy as a writing system and stressing the evolution and refinement of Chinese writing, he provides structure for our understanding. He introduces and illustrates "forms of composition" categorized as "pictograms," "ideograms," "composite phonetics," "transferred," and "borrowed" characters, providing the history of these stylized ideographs. Beginning in the seventeenth century B.C.E., he traces the evolution of seven seminal Chinese writing styles, all linked to the history of China's emperors, who commissioned new styles of writing with which to record their victories. This handsome coffee-table book, which also serves as an introductory text on calligraphy with information on materials and techniques, is amply illustrated with archival and contemporary examples. Its appendixes include not only a bibliography but a chronology of Chinese history, dynasty by dynasty, making it a must-have for those interested in Chinese language and writing systems and their histories. Whitney Scott
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"A must-have for those interested in Chinese language and writing systems and their histories."— Booklist

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Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Shambhala; 1 edition (November 18, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590300505
• ISBN-13: 978-1590300503
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,810,910 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not recommended, December 28, 2003

By 

Gordon H. Jee "arjuna16" (New York NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Between Heaven and Earth: A History of Chinese Writing (Paperback)

For any serious reader curious of the origins, history and development of written Chinese, do not bother with this book. It is hard to know who is at fault for bringing this book to English readers. It is supposedly translated from a French edition, but the bibiliography contains only English references. I have long been a fan of Shambhala's editions but this book is fraught with errors, starting with the back cover. You'll be fascinated to learn that the character for 'Prime Minister," when written in xingshu style reads "Elephant"! (You can see this for yourself as the xingshu "Elephant" appears twice on the bottom row). Romanizations are inconsistent - Lao-Tseu, Zhuang-Tseu and Xun-Tseu - and Chin Shihuangdi morphs into Qui Shihuangdi halfway through the book. An explanation of the character for 'Fishing" confuses its left element with its right element. Is it "Fish" or "Water"? Anyone with a basic understanding of Chinese writing can see that the author's (or translator's) explanation doesn't correspond with the ideogram's elements.
No translations for many of the cursive examples are provided, nor do the author's explanations provide anything more than his opinion of what the script "feels" like to him. Since I am not an expert on literati, I cannot confirm the authenticity of the names and anecdotes Shi Bo has mentioned. At 17.95, this was a waste of my money. Shambhala should either be more discriminating when selecting new editions, or hire an editor who has some grounding/expertise in the subjects they release.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A considered comment regarding Heaven and Earth, February 25, 2007

By 

Larry Bullis (Anacortes, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Between Heaven and Earth: A History of Chinese Writing (Paperback)

I have to weigh in on this. I have been interested in the Chinese character since high school; that was back in the dark ages. I graduated in 1961. I was interested in the work of Ezra Pound and his collaboration with Ernest Fenallosa in the presentation of the image through written language. Subsequently, I studied Art History with a well known calligrapher, Lloyd Reynolds. Those who know the history of the wonderful fonts we use on our computers today will recognize this name as belonging to one of the sources; many of our major font designers studied with this guy and those who didn't know who he was. I was, at the time, interested enough in the visual/literary boundary to change my handwriting forever. My Italic cursive may be degenerate, but it is unmistakable and I receive regular compliments on it when checking out at the supermarket (three this week). Since then, I have been working as a visual artist (generally in editorial photography as well as showing independently) and for the past seventeen years teaching in college art departments. I forgot mostly about my fascination with the ideogramatic image as presented in the Chinese character until recently when I found myself hopeful for a year long faculty exchange in Beijing. How I have missed it, and how fascinating it is for me today!

Fortunately, I found this book, which I think is absolutely wonderful. I just bought myself a rather expensive "synthetic weasel" brush, a DaVinci series 488. Being a visual person, I have something of an instinct for the characters. Knowing that I'm too old ever to become fluent (for lack of time left even if I were to be blessed with a new memory which is certainly not likely) I absolutely revel in this wonderful book.

Yes, I can be fairly prickly when it comes to detail in my own medium (ask my students) and from that point of view I can understand the point of view of the first reviewer. However, I must align myself solidly with the second review. I, too, noticed the reversal of the images in "fishing" and just bent with it as bamboo in the wind. I make mistakes, too. We must, of course, hold our authors and publishers responsible for such things, but we must also credit readers with the intelligence and the ability to adapt. I think that to be so hard on a book that is in so many ways so wonderful is to be excessively pedantic. What is the point in this, when anyone with eyes who is sufficiently interested to pick this book up and read it can see the reversal of the description? If they can't see it, so what? How will it hurt them? Will it even diminish their experience with the book? I doubt it.

In a way, it seems like it might be useful, or at least not harmful, to offer readers little bits of trouble to encourage thinking. As a teacher I see far too much failure in the motivation in my students to think critically. I really can't take these criticisms very seriously at all. True, they are, but enough to invalidate an otherwise magnificent little book? I really don't think so.

I would encourage anyone interested in the subject to buy this book and read it. Also, go out an get yourself one each of the treasures: a brush, an inkstick, a stone to mix the ink with, and some paper. The Chinese language is hard, but well worth study if for no other reason because it is so incredibly visual. Even if you will never speak it, not even in a Chinese restaurant, it will fascinate you if you are susceptible to the ideas of words in the world of images. There are not very many books that do justice to this. This one, despite its fairly minor flaws, really does, and does it very well. It is beautiful and has the potential to reach your heart. Go for it.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful overview of the Chinese script's evolution, June 21, 2004

By 

Thomas Hochmann (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Between Heaven and Earth: A History of Chinese Writing (Paperback)

I think the other review here, giving this book but one star, is not really fair. This book is obviously meant to offer a guided tour of the evolution of written Chinese. So what if the naming isn't totally consistent? I'm not reading the book for names, and even if I was, I could easily look them up online to get a more "proper" spelling. Are such things niggles that count against the book? Yes. Are they even remotely significant drawbacks to the book as a whole? I would say no.

/Between Heaven and Earth/ offers us mere mortals a glimpse at the fascinating history of one of the most beautiful written languages on the planet. Sure, it is lacking in scholarly details, but that's absolutely not what this book is for. It is meant to be accessible and interesting, while offering a good understanding of the Chinese script's history.

I bought this book for a very simple reason: I am fascinated by Chinese, especially the script. But I am NOT a linguist! This is not an academic linguistic book, and it doesn't even try to be. That's specifically why I bought it! I wanted to kick back, relax, and absorb a bit of this lovely cultural treasure of China.

This is a great book, and I highly recommend it, little niggles and flaws aside. The calligraphy is beautiful, the overview information presented in each chapter is interesting and informative in a general way, and overall I had a really enjoyable time reading /Between Heaven and Earth/. No, it's not going to make you an expert on the minutiae of the historical details. But it will inform, entertain, and most of all, inspire further investigation and enjoyment of this wonderful language. For that, I heartily give this book a strong recommendation and a full five stars.