Books by Ian Johnson
Ian Johnson is a Pulitzer-Prize winning writer working out of Beijing, focusing on society, religion, and history.
“It’s about engagement with history. It’s about recent history, the period since the Communist Party took power, although there are also interesting stories to tell about the politics of history in earlier periods. It’s very focused, and what drives it, in part, is how compelling the profiles of the individuals involved are—people who are making these very risky moves to unearth stories from the past that deserve to be told. These people are not really what we think of as dissidents: they’re people who are trying to work within the system, but within the crevices in the system. One of the most important things about the book is the way it pushes back against any idea of a brainwashed population that has either completely accepted official lines or given up on the idea of being able to push back against them.” Read more...
Jeffrey Wasserstrom, Historian
Interviews with Ian Johnson
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1
The Religious Question in Modern China
by Vincent Goossaert and David Palmer -
2
Qigong Fever
by David Palmer -
3
The Missionary's Curse and Other Tales from a Chinese Catholic Village
by Henrietta Harrison -
4
Zen Baggage: A Pilgrimage to China
by Bill Porter -
5
Democracy’s Dharma: Religious Renaissance and Political Development in Taiwan
by Richard Madsen
The best books on Religion in China, recommended by Ian Johnson
The best books on Religion in China, recommended by Ian Johnson
China is a religious country with all kinds of faiths being practised across its vast territories—despite Mao’s attempts to eradicate them. The Chinese Communist Party tolerates a variety of religions but continues to grapple with the potential challenge they pose to its authority. Prize-winning journalist Ian Johnson introduces the best books on the complex topic of religion in China.
Interviews where books by Ian Johnson were recommended
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1
Sparks: China's Underground Historians and their Battle for the Future
by Ian Johnson -
2
Red Memory: The Afterlives of China's Cultural Revolution
by Tania Branigan -
3
Invitation to a Banquet: The Story of Chinese Food
by Fuchsia Dunlop -
4
Made in Taiwan: Recipes and Stories from the Island Nation
by Clarissa Wei -
5
Waiting to Be Arrested at Night: A Uyghur Poet's Memoir of China's Genocide
by Tahir Hamut Izgil and translated by Joshua Freeman
The Best China Books of 2023, recommended by Jeffrey Wasserstrom
The Best China Books of 2023, recommended by Jeffrey Wasserstrom
The rise of China has led to an ever broader range of books about the country becoming available in English. There’s also a greater focus on its diversity, which the country’s Communist leadership likes to downplay. Jeffrey Wasserstrom, a professor of Chinese history at UC Irvine, talks us through his favourite books of 2023, from painful historical episodes to the harsh policies targeting a largely Muslim ethnic group in Xinjiang today—by way of two lighter books that focus on food and cooking.
