1. Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China

I’ve read the Chinese version of this book when I was still in graduate school (some content was edited out in its Chinese version), and I’ve kept the English version ever since. This is a thick book. But if there were only one book to read, I would recommend professor Vogel’s Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China.

Deng Xiaoping (邓小平) profoundly impacted the direction of Chinese history and world history, he fundamentally changed the destiny of every contemporary Chinese. Vogel’s interpretation of Deng Xiaoping's political career and the logic of his behavior is to interpret contemporary China and the historical changes behind his personal destiny.

The author, Ezra F. Vogel (傅高义), is Professor Emeritus of Henry Ford II Sociology, Harvard University, and former Director of Fei Zhengqing East Asian Research Center. He is considered to be the only scholar in the United States who is an expert in the affairs of China and Japan. If you’d like, check out his books on Japan as well. They’re equally brilliant and insightful.

Professor Vogel has the title of "Mr. China" at Harvard. In 1972, as the successor of John K. Fairbank (费正清), he became the second director of the East Asian Research Center. He has been a sinologist and an expert on Chinese issues that have been valued by the Chinese government.

• 中文：《邓小平时代》

• Author: Ezra F. Vogel

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Paperback: $20.49

• Free on Kindle unlimited (Chinese version)

2. The Search for Modern China

This 800-page long volume, a New York Times Bestseller at its time, was “a remarkable achievement'“ (Boston Globe) by any standard.

Unlike the other books listed here, The Search for Modern China goes a little further back to the late Ming dynasty (1368 to 1644) that is remembered for cultural ties with the West, its drama, literature, and world-renowned porcelain. The famous Voyages of Zheng He happened during the most powerful and prosperous times of the Ming dynasty.

Its author, Jonathan Dermot Spence (史景迁), is recognized as one of the most influential sinologists around the world. He has written in detail about the role of history in shaping modern China. His highly acclaimed In Search of Modern China has become the standard textbook for modern Chinese history, which makes this book just another must-read.

Tips: I bought a pre-owned of The Search for Modern China on Amazon and spent only $5 on it. You might consider doing the same.

• 中文：《追寻现代中国》

• Author: Jonathan D. Spence

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Paperback: $24.9

3. The Great Chinese Revolution 1800-1985

Need a thinner book for a starter?

In no more than a few hundred pages, John F. Fairbank, one of the most prominent sinologists, examines the transformation of Imperial China to Communist China in his book The Great Chinese Revolution. He also discusses the substantial and stirring social and cultural changes that have occurred in the most two recent centuries of Chinese history and looks at modern economic development in China.

In case you’re not familiar with the author’s prominent status in academia, John F. Fairbank was the teacher of numerous established sinologists and Chinese scholars. He’s widely respected in the field of East Asian Studies.

• Author: John K. Fairbank (费正清)

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Paperback price: $16.99

4. A Short History of Chinese Philosophy

My high school history teacher recommended this book to me, so I feel obligated to give him the credit.

A Short History of Chinese Philosophy is one of the only two books on the list written by a Chinese scholar. Its author Feng Youlan (冯友兰), an influential Chinese philosopher, historian, and writer, was hired as a lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania in 1947 to teach the history of Chinese philosophy.

The English lecture was compiled and written as A Brief History of Chinese Philosophy, which was published by McMillan Company of the United States in 1948. One fun fact is that the book was originally written in English.

As soon as this book was published, it became the first choice for westerners to understand and learn Chinese philosophy. This monograph has been a universal textbook for Chinese philosophy in universities around the world.

If you’re interested in Chinese philosophy or the way Chinese people think, you cannot skip A Short History of Chinese Philosophy. Prepare to be surprised. The ancient Chinese were not the Chinese you think and meet today.

• 中文：《中国哲学简史》

• Author: Feng Youlan

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Paperback price: $20

• Chinese version available

5. On China

Henry Kissinger (亨利·基辛格) is the most brilliant and successful diplomat America has seen in the past 50 years, and there’s little argument about it, and therefore no need for me to introduce how much influence his name carries.

But, he wasn’t always a Chinese expert. He was in a panic when selected by President Nixon to be his forerunner to China. So one night in Boston, Henry Kissinger, then a Harvard scholar, quietly snuck into professor Fairbank’s house asking for advice because he was about to embark on the most historic trip that any American has ever embarked—to China.

Let this New York Times bestseller help you explore the link between China’s ancient past and its present-day trajectory.

• Author: Henry Kissinger

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Paperback pricing: $15.59

6. China: Alive in the Bitter Sea

The author Fox Butterfield, a Pulitzer Award winner, and the first New York Times correspondent stationed in Beijing, China, had an interesting story about the start of his journey to the east.

Mr. Butterfield was a Harvard undergrad not knowing what to pursue his career. At a very early stage of his college life, he was summoned by the world-renowned Chinese sinologist professor Fairbank. During their meeting, professor Fairbank spoke very highly of him and encouraged the author to join the East Asian Studies department. Surprised by the compliments, the young Butterfield embraced the warm invitation and decided to devote his life to studying East Asian cultures.

Mr. Butterfield only found out years later by an accidental chat with his classmates that professor Fairbank had talked to a legion of Harvard students showing his interest in recruiting the young undergrads and congratulated their achievements. Unknowingly, the young Butterfield was the only one captured by the professor’s persuasive words.

This book is a receiver of the National Book Award for Nonfiction in 1983.

• 中文：《苦海无涯》

• Author: Fox Butterfield

• This book might be a little hard to buy on Amazon. Try your luck with a local library.

7. Leftover in China: The Women Shaping the World's Next Superpower

Leftover in China is the most recently published book among all the recommendations here. However, it doesn’t undermine any legitimacy of its value, and perhaps, you should consider reading this book first because of its relevance to today’s issues.

You might think this is a book about some romance stories in China but it’s more than that. You will be amazed to learn how the marriage bureaus work in China, how a rocket scientist designed the One China Policy that China had adopted for decades, how Korea (and surely Koreans) will disappear in 200 years if the fertility rate of their country doesn’t change.

The author Roseann Lake, previously based in Beijing, is The Economist's Cuba correspondent now. Leftover in China is her debut book and quickly became a national bestseller in China after its publication. Roseann Lake’s China coverage has appeared in Foreign Policy, Time, The Atlantic, Salon, and Vice, among other publications.

• 中文：《剩女时代》

• Author: Roseann Lake

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Price: $14.55

• Chinese version available

8. Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master's Insights on China, the United States, and the World 

I still remember vividly the unannounced communication between the two complete strangers.

One day on my way to work, I was riding the subway and the train was two stops away from my destination. There was a black guy, 20 something years old, standing next to me and getting ready to get off the train.

The door opened, one-stop before me, and the guy suddenly turned to me and went, “Are you reading Lee Kuan Yew?“

I nodded.

He kept going, “I don’t see many people reading Lee Kuan Yew. If you like him, you should also read about Goh Chok Tong.”

The train stopped. He rushed out (typical New Yorker) and I couldn’t get a chance to respond. His words were utterly unexpected and I still continued to process the moment. A few seconds later, I was immersed with a weird kind of pleasure. Being understood by a stranger was the highlight of my entire subway reading life.

In case you don’t know, I’m a huge fan of Singapore’s prime minister. I’m not the only one and will not be the last one. Many political figures, such as Obama and Hillary Clinton, have asked him for advice on governing the country. Top-level Chinese policymakers, including Deng Xiaoping, also refer to Lee Kuan Yew’s opinions.

This book was dictated by Lee Kuan Yew and compiled and edited by Graham Allison.

• 中文：《李光耀论中国与世界》

• Author: Graham Allison

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Hardcover price: $17.35

• Chinese version available

9. Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides's Trap?

Ready to ponder the past while indulging yourself in envisioning the future? Get ready for another book by Graham Allison.

When talking about the future of the US-China relationship, it’s almost inevitable to address the Thucydides’s Trap (Chinese: 修昔底德陷阱).

We should all try to avoid falling into the "Thucydides trap." - President Xi Jinping

The "Thucydides Trap" refers to a newly emerging power that will inevitably challenge the existing power, and the existing power will inevitably respond to this threat, so war becomes inevitable. This statement originated from the famous ancient Greek historian Thucydides, who believed that when a rising power competed with an existing ruling hegemon, most of the dangers faced by both sides ended in war.

The author Graham Allison gives a new interpretation of the Thucydides’s Trap in a modern geopolitical context. Will China and the United States go to war in the 21st century?

What’s your answer?

• Author: Graham Allison

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Price: $12.99

10. The Art of Resistance: Painting by Candlelight in Mao's China

This is an art book and a history book.

I came across The Art of Resistance when I was strolling in the Strand bookstore on a Friday evening with my wife, then-girlfriend. I guess I was being cheap by not taking her to a lavish restaurant or a Broadway show…

I wasn’t quite planning on buying the book or any book that night because that wasn’t really the goal. I just accidentally saw this book sitting in the discount area. Again, I’m cheap.

But I’m so happy that I picked it up. What I can tell you now is that the book is unquestionably a hidden gem. If you’re into art and the other less glamorous side of the contemporary history of China, you will find this book incredibly interesting.

The Art of Resistance surveys the lives of seven painters―Ding Cong, Feng Zikai, Li Keran, Li Kuchan, Huang Yongyu, Pan Tianshou, and Shi Lu during China's Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), a time when many artists were considered counterrevolutionary and were forbidden to paint. Drawing on interviews with the artists and their families and on materials collected during her visits to China, Shelley Drake Hawks examines their painting styles, political outlooks, and most importantly attitudes toward life.

• Author: Shelley Drake Hawks

• Buy it now: Amazon

• Hardcover price: $65

Bonus: Mandarin Primer (An Intensive Course in Spoken Chinese)

Strictly speaking, Mandarin Primer is a textbook about the Chinese language but I would still like to share it with you because of its significance in the development of modern Chinese language education.

Mandarin Primer is written by an exceptionally talented Chinese linguist Yuen Ren Chao (赵元任). A polyglot, speaking German, French, and Japanese, Yuen Ren Chao earned degrees from Harvard and Cornell. He once served as president of the Linguistic Society of America.

Why call this a bonus? This book is now rare.

Published by Harvard University Press, Mandarin Primer was one of the most widely used Mandarin Chinese textbooks in the 20th century. Today, you might still be able to purchase it on Amazon but it could be pricey. Its price can range anywhere from $70 to $850.

So again, try your luck with a local library or a pre-owned bookstore.

One thing you need to be aware of is that the pronunciation and romanization system used in the book is different than of the pinyin you see today. Don’t be alarmed.

What’s your favorite book about China? Comment below and share your selection with us now!

Author: Tian Zhou

Listen to Tian Zhou’s podcast 好奇天天 here.