About the author
Linda Jaivin is an Australian novelist, essayist, cultural commentator, and translator from Chinese. Her nonfiction aims to make China's long history legible without smoothing away contradiction, rupture, or the problem of how the past is used in the present.
Linda Jaivin begins with origin stories and archaeological evidence, then moves through the major dynasties, periods of division, foreign conquest, and the long argument over what legitimate rule should look like. The pace is brisk, but it does not reduce the past to a list of emperors.
Where to start
Start with The Shortest History of China. A compact history connects ancient philosophy and imperial rule to revolution, reform, and China under Xi Jinping.
