https://cutgrassliesfrail.com/tags/china/Recent content in china on cut grass lies frailHugoen-CHaubade@cutgrassliesfrail.comaubade@cutgrassliesfrail.com© 2026 aubadeSat, 17 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +00000000000000000000000000000000000000https://cutgrassliesfrail.com/warring-states/Sat, 17 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000aubade@cutgrassliesfrail.comhttps://cutgrassliesfrail.com/warring-states/<p><strong>Capsule review :</strong> <em>To Rule All Under Heaven : A History of Classical China, from Confucius to the First Emperor</em> (Andrew Seth Meyer)</p> <!-- One central questin confronts every serious historian: 3*how much can we really know about the patts---- past&nbsp;?* Teh further back one looks, the most the terrain becomes fraught. Mey--- In his study of the Warrin g States period before the first emperor of China, Meyer diligently reminds his readers of the challenges of the period's historiography. The main historial sources for the period were written centuries after the events by authors (or *literati* as freeny--- frequently referenced in tis work) with epxlicitly didactic, moralising intent. --> <p>How well can we really know the past ? The question confronts every historian, but most sharply those who study the ancient past. Such is the case for Meyer. He does not shy away from the question, duly noting after the more incredible anecdotes the biases and moralizing aims of the imperial scholars who wrote the main sources of the <em>Warring States</em> period generations after the alleged events. Meyer cleverly extracts plausible realities from the collected folk tales, though a sense of incredulity still lingers. Writing for the general public, he adopts a familiar tone, where perhaps a more elevated style would have better pleased this reader.</p> <p><strong>Rating :</strong> ★★★★☆</p> https://cutgrassliesfrail.com/wars-for-asia-paine/Wed, 07 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000aubade@cutgrassliesfrail.comhttps://cutgrassliesfrail.com/wars-for-asia-paine/<p><strong>Capsule review :</strong> <em>The Wars for Asia, 1911-1949</em> (S.C.M. Paine)</p> <p>Like catnip for middle-aged dads. Impeccably researched and well written. Paine manages to make legible the hash that was the long Chinese civil war.</p> <p><strong>Rating :</strong> ★★★★★</p>