“Enthralling.”—The New Yorker
“With meticulous research and passionate style, Diana Preston recreates the tragedy that consumed China a century ago.”—Iris Chang, author of The Rape of Nanking
“An outstanding popular history that also passes muster as first-rate historical research.”—Booklist
“Fascinating…penned with an obvious addiction to the delicious little details of history: whimsical, outrageous and macabre.”—The Washington Post
“A dramatic narrative that can be read on the beach or in the classroom…well-researched and lavishly descriptive accounts.”—The Christian Science Monitor
“Highly readable history.”—The Wall Street Journal
“Compelling…Briskly paced and carefully researched, its drama is replete with curious characters.”—The Boston Globe
“A nail-biting example of narrative history at its best…Preston knows precisely which colorful details will spice up this masterful mix of history, gossip, crystal-clear military strategy and ironic observations about colonial and imperial politiciking—and she keeps the pot at an irresistibly lively boil throughout.”—Salon.com
“Diana Preston’s dramatic retelling of the summer-long siege of the Peking foreign district 100 years ago—‘a pivotal episode in China’s fractured relationship with the West’—does much to clarify China’s enduring resentment toward foreign interference…Preston’s account, compiled from the many letters, diaries, and memoirs by European survivors of the siege, captures an odd strain of mordant humor.”—The New York Times Book Review
“A colorful and well-presented treatment of a crucial turning point in history.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Well-researched and well-told…brings to light the details of this obscure yet culturally significant event. Her stirring account, culled from the letters, diaries, and memoirs of the foreign survivors, shows exactly what it was like after June 20, 1900, when the Boxers and regular Chinese soldiers laid siege to foreign embassies…The vivid eyewitness accounts place the reader in the middle of events. And by shedding light on this important episode in past China-West relations, Preston goes a long way in explaining China’s current suspicious attitude toward the world.”—Houston Chronicle
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