I joined the World Citizen Challenge in honor of my son and daughter in law, both up and coming “world citizens,” who divide their time between homes in Southern Florida and Southern Thailand. Through participating in this challenge, I hope to increase my knowledge and awareness of the Asian history and culture in which my daughter in law was raised, and which my son is embracing as part of his lifestyle.
- China, A New History~John King Fairbank
A huge, scholarly type history of China nearly from the beginning of time. It’s rather difficult reading, but I’m pressing on, since I feel it’s probably the best background I’m likely to get. While I tend to skim through the sections on economics and territorial battles, and I’ve never been one to study maps very well, I find the dicussions regarding social and cultural development, as well as religious belief, quite interesting.
What strikes me most: My naivete regarding other culture. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I realize I’d forgotten that America was not the “first and foremost” culture or nation in the world. We are practically embryonic in terms of national development and history.
I’m particpating at the “Minor” level, which requires reading three books from two categories. I will be reading:
Life Along the Silk Road , by Susan Whitefeel (history)
China, A New History , by John King Fairbank and Merle Goldman (history)
River Town: Two Years on the Yangtzee, by Peter Hessler (memoir)
and a bonus book
Wild Swans, Three Daughters of China, by Jung Chang (memoir)
