The Last Days of Old Beijing
Life in the Vanishing Backstreets of a City Transformed
by Michael Meyer
Should I read this?
appears in About China, Travel, and History.
A fascinating, intimate portrait of Beijing through the lens of its oldest neighborhood, facing destruction as the city, and China, relentlessly modernizes. Soon we will be able to say about old Beijing that what emperors, warlords, Japanese invaders, and Communist planners couldn't eradicate, the market economy has. Weaving historical vignettes of...
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Why recommended
appears in About China, Travel, and History.
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