It's hard to explain how wonderful this book is. China in transition has been a historical event in itself and Hessler finds a way to intertwine that with two other separate timelines that follow the same story. I highly recommend this for anyone interested in China, to whatever degree.

This was great. I was a bit skeptical of this book, lent to me by a friend, thinking it'd be all Under the Tuscan Sun rose-colored travelogue, but it's nothing like that. The author is a journalist who spent about 5 years in China (about 1998 through 2002), writing articles and teaching English. He turned his experiences into an entirely non-journalistic set of interconnected first-person stories, about how he learned about various aspects of China. His students, mostly rural kids from Szechuan, wrote to him for years, as they traveled to the new industrial towns, and told them about their lives. He learned about a researcher who had committed suicide after being branded a rightest in the '50s, and tracked down his friends, colleagues, and relatives. He had a fascinating friendship with a Uighur man who immigrated to DC, and who was personally affected by the aftermath of 9/11. Throughout, the writing is honest, evocative, insightful and personal without being sappy at all. And despite the cliched cover, there are no descriptions of quaint fishermen, or noble pandas, or incredible food. Thankfully.

Peter Hessler starts in China as an English teacher, eventually moving his way over to journalism. He keeps in contact with his students and their stories are brought to life in this book. He uses these stories to tell a bit about China's past and teach the reader about more recent history. For example, he has a student move to Shenzen and get a job at a factory there. Peter tells the recent history of Shenzen and how it is an experimental city, built with many factories that have attracted young people to come work. This makes it different from many other cities in China as it is one city where the younger generation isn't living with their family.

There are lots of interesting stories like this interspersed in the book. I learned a lot about the Uighurs, a group I had no knowledge of before. Peter describes then as having similar problems as the Tibetans but without the Dalai Lama to make their plight more well known.

At times, this book could be a bit slow and too detailed. There were also times where Peter would start to examine one subject, stop, and come back to it later 50 pages. It at times made for a disjointed read. However it told an interesting story of an unknown China to me.

The stories of the author’s former English language students who took such names as William Jefferson Foster, Nancy Drew and Emily Bronte are interesting and funny. The author does a great job of presenting the unique perspectives of the various Chinese people he encounters without being patronizing or judgmental, although he often puts a very funny spin on them.

I’ve always thought of China as a social monolith but that’s clearly not the case and it was interesting to me to know why I was so wrong. The story of Polat, the author’s Uighur friend, underscored the differences and struggles of the ethnic and religious minorities in China whom I never even knew existed.

Interwoven throughout the modern day stories of the author’s friends and associates is the mysterious tale of Chen Mengjia which builds slowly and completely through the Artifact chapters interspersed throughout the book. At first these chapters seem disparate but they ultimately come together beautifully.

The author’s story of the burglary and its aftermath in the first third of the book is genuinely the funniest passage I’ve ever read.

This book is the second in a trilogy and I’m reluctant to read the others because I enjoyed this one so much. Maybe it would have been better to read the first book (River Town) but it didn’t detract from my enjoyment of this book.

Update - I read River Town (the first in the series) and it’s excellent and worth reading first.

I thought the book was at its best in the early pages, when Hessler was writing about his former students. Although it’d be a bit dated now, I’m just fascinated by China’s change and growth- it’s interesting to see that reflected in the stories of regular people, I loved reading about their frustrations, triumphs, and changing lives.

But that aspect largely gives way to examinations of the past. It’s all interesting, just a bit disjointed. I’m not really sure what Hessler is going for, and somewhat wish he’d just fully explained one person, fully explained another, etc, rather than jumping around in time and place. I feel this his method is likely purposeful, it helps impose the “tangled web” aspect he seems to feel is important, but it also makes it confusing as to who is who and who’s responsible for what.

Good book though, just be prepared for a lot more past than the back cover blurb would indicate- it takes up a good 3/4 of the book.

Thus finishes my mini obsession with Peter Hessler books about China (a country I was never particularly interested in until I started reading his wonderful accounts of people, the culture, and history).
I throughly recommend Peter's books.

I cannot recommend Hessler enough. If you want to know what life is like in China, he is your guide. If you've never been to China, I would recommend [b:River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze|94053|River Town Two Years on the Yangtze|Peter Hessler|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1408452815s/94053.jpg|1441686]. It's more anecdotal and has more humor. This book has a lot of history,which if you're not that interested, can weigh the story down. But his writing style is very Western-friendly without losing the essential Chinese feel. This is a delicate balance and even some of the best Asian American fiction writers could learn something from him about how to write a western-friendly Chinese book.

Hessler has personally moved on to Egypt, taking on learning Arabic and all things Middle Eastern. If you read his books on China, you will have nothing but the utmost respect for what this man has accomplished and what can will accomplish. I look forward to all future books of his and hope he has a long, long career.

I had trouble getting 'into' this book for reasons that were hard to figure out. I would put it down for days at a time. Chapters jump from story to story and until you get a little ways in, it doesn't seem to have a force driving the narrative forward. I enjoyed the second half much better and found his reflections on Washington DC (when a character immigrates to the US) and the similarities between Chinese and Americans particularly interesting. I don't know too much about China and Hessler does a good job of really introducing you to the Chinese people beyond the government or history.
In terms of who I might recommend this to, usually I find that books focusing on personal narratives are great reads to introduce you to a country or a culture if you are unfamiliar with it or do not usually read history or political science. This book, though, I think it probably most enjoyable for readers already very interested and somewhat knowledgeable about China.