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M. A. Aldrich
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The Search for a Vanishing Beijing: A Guide to China's Capital Through the Ages Paperback – January 1, 2006

by M. A. Aldrich (Author)
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 14 ratings
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The Search for a Vanishing Beijing weaves the genres of travel essays and travel guides into a comprehensive narrative about the cultural mosaic of the capital of China. The author leads the reader through palaces, temples, back streets and markets while bringing back to living memory forgotten or overlooked Peking customs, stories and beliefs. The text touches on everything under the sun as the reader walks from Tian An Men Square through the surrounding neighborhoods and further to sights in rustic settings. The narrative relates stories about imperial customs, street food, temple festivals, historic trees, Red Guard struggle sessions, Tibetan and Mongolian customs, hiking trails, political clashes, residences of famous Chinese and foreigners, ghosts, prisons, classical Chinese poetry, ice-skating, espionage, burial customs, old and new embassy districts, courtesans, restaurants and (even) Chinese liquor. Interspersed throughout the book are stories told by such diverse sources as Marco Polo and Bernard Shaw as well as 20th century Sinophiles like Juliet Bredon, George Kates and David Kidd. Commentary from Ming and Qing era travel guides are brought out for a Chinese perspective on celebrated locations in the city.
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  1. Print length
    422 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Hong Kong University Press
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2006
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 0.8 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    9622099394
  7. ISBN-13
    978-9622099395
  8. See all details
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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
14 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

J. Lee
5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible Beijing Resource!
Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2010
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If you have any interest in learning about Beijing than I am sure there is no greater resource in the English language than M.A. Aldrich's work. This book is incredibly thorough in scope. It starts by explaining the imperial areas such as the Forbidden City and Zhongnanhai, and systematically works itself out north south east and west. In addition to covering all of the areas of Beijing proper there are also short sections on famous sites like the Great Wall and Ming Tombs as well as food and opera. The author does not give much information about anything outside of the present day 4th ring road (the bulk is dedicated to the 3rd ring road as areas near Yonghe Gong are considered to be northern suburbs), but that doesn't take away from the value of this book.

The paper is all glossy and of high quality. There are many pictures, sketches, and photographs illustrating how Beijing has changed. I would highly recommend this to anybody that is interested in Beijing.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2014
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Brilliant, accessibly written, comprehensive, poignant and droll. If you want to explore Beijing, buy this book first.
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Elliott B.
4.0 out of 5 stars Great read but requires perspective!
Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2013
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First let's start with who I would NOT recommend this book to: anyone who is looking for purely authoritative and factual information about Beijing and China.

Because the book contains a large amount of entertaining fiction, China-insider jokes, and even some false or outdated information, I do not recommend it for those who are in the first stages of learning about China. It would also be difficult to recommend this book to a casual reader. It often requires a discerning eye and a fair bit of judgement to decide when the author is joking or exaggerating, and when his sources or understanding are incorrect.

That said, I DO NOT blame the author for this. The introduction to this book makes it clear, this is not an academic work, it often does not cite sources, and the author acknowledges that contents ranges from factual, to speculative, to pure fantastical. With that in mind, it is a great read. For those with a bit of knowledge of China, its casual tone and commentary on life in China remain entertaining throughout. And the book does contain an impressive wealth of factual information within it... you just need to be able to tease it out and decide for yourself what to take seriously.
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Darcey Wunker
3.0 out of 5 stars "A Look Today at Old Peking" more apropos a title.
Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2016
An interesting read, but very much an interpretation of Beijing with a "I'm foreign and therefore better" perspective - there are an immense number of statements that are judgment calls rather than a neutral guidebook-esque view, accompanied by small turns of phrase that make for uncomfortable reading. The segment of the book called "Traditional Beliefs" is particularly problematic, since while it attempts to give an idea of what life might have been like, it also provides a caricature of the people and communities and does so in a way that epitomises Edward Said's "Orientalist scholar" of yore: I am writing this review because it was so odd to me that I had to check the date of publishing for this book.. One example from an early chapter: "Qin Shi is well remembered in the Chinese annals as a bully, despite clucking and cooing that goes on these days about terracotta images of his Gestapo."

Certainly worth a read for the armchair traveler, but for anyone with a more than passing interest in Asia and Beijing, a larger segment of this will make for a read that is a reminder of the vanished Western views of Peking from the Legation Districts.
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Jung Ji-Woo
5.0 out of 5 stars A poignant read for troubled times
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2022
I used this book extensively when I was in Beijing for a couple of weeks in 2017. A delightful companion. Today all I ever seem to hear or read about China is negative, but Aldrich's book reminds me what a fascinating country China is. That reminder is very welcome.
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John Ross
5.0 out of 5 stars What a tremendously enjoyable book!
Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2017
What a tremendously enjoyable book! Reading it feels like going for a stroll through the city with an amiable and knowledgeable Old China hand. "In Search of Vanishing Beijing" has a lot more personality than the average guidebook, and I mean that in a good way. This is not an author inserting himself center stage for matters of ego, but rather the author’s passion and humor adding spice and bite to the text, and helping to make the great density of information presented wonderfully readable.

The book works both as an armchair traveler’s read and also as a guide for visitors to the northern capital. But, above all, I think that it is best as a guide for residents of Beijing. Coming across a book like this early in your stay and be the difference between getting out and exploring a city or staying disconnected from it in a small enclave of daily routines and routes. Actually, it was such a book, a reprinted copy of a 1935 guide, "In Search of Old Peking," that sparked Aldrich’s explorations.
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Nicholas M Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars This book has been meticulously researched and is beautifully written. I have lived in Beijing for more ...
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2016
This book has been meticulously researched and is beautifully written. I have lived in Beijing for more than a decade, but until I read this book, I had no idea of the treasures that, though vanishing, are still accessible if only one takes the time to seek them out. This is the book to take with you on Sunday afternoon walks around the old city,probably now the best way of getting around the golden square mile in the center of the city given the traffic these days. It's also the book to dip into at home when pollution levels make it unwise to leave the house, though reading it on such days always makes me makes me sad for what Beijing has become since the much vaunted 2008 Olympics. Aldrich has divided Beijing into manageable chunks, with each chapter structured as a tour of a particular area. Each tour bursts with good humour and unusual facts. For those who want to walk the city book in hand, the text also helpfully includes the Chinese characters and pinyin for the key locations of each tour. This book is a delight from cover to cover and, I think, should be on the bookshelf of everyone who has an interest in China.
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Top reviews from other countries

David Houston
5.0 out of 5 stars Quite outstanding
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 29, 2021
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I have been fortunate enough to visit Beijing a number of times since the 1980's, and seen the rather scary speed at which the city has changed. This is without doubt the finest guide to Beijing I have seen., wide ranging in scope, packed with fascinating detail and the writing is witty and entertaining. If you have any interest in the history of China I would highly recommend this outstanding book.
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Amazon Customer
1.0 out of 5 stars not my order
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 2, 2019
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not my order
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 22, 2017
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A wonderful book if you are interested in getting to know Beijing, past and present.
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OJ8lpibB3WQpkv3bPa0TS
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing book - sometimes difficult to follow.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2011
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Amazing book, I wish there is one for each city and country. Should be more maps comparing but its good anyway.
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