Sidney Hook's philosophical works, notably those expounding pragmatism and Marxism, are of enduring value and are still in print. But his most consistent writings were his shorter pieces attacking totalitarianism and defending the ideals of a free society. It was a feature of his exemplary life that he wrote an enormous volume of correspondence, where he felt it worthwhile to explain and explicate democratic values.

This book contains a small, chronologically-ordered selection of those letters, which make fascinating reading. The defence of democracy is never less than erudite and thought-provoking. Hook was often criticised for being impatient of those who differed from him, but these letters give no such indication. On the contrary, his unfailing generosity of spirit is evident in the letters reproduced here to his fellow-philosopher and humanist Corliss Lamont, who unfailingly defended the vicissitudes of Stalin and than whom no more egregious apologist for Soviet tyranny existed. The editor, Edward Shapiro provides a useful introduction to each decade's correspondence, and observes that in later years Hook's political writings were dominated by the subject of the Communist threat, and that the spark seemed to be lacking in, for example, Hook's defence of social democracy. I am sure this is right, and equally I am sure that Hook's emphasis was justified. The differences between conservatives and social democrats on economic philosophy are family differences among those who share a commitment to democratic processes and institutions; the differences between that heterogeneous collection of democrats and totalitarianism are fundamental and extreme. Hook's letters provide a powerful contribution to the defence of democratic values.

This review is in reference to the paperback version of this book. 5 stars to the novel itself!

This is the finest novel i've ever read. I remember reading this novel as a young martial arts student and loving every minute of it. Now as an instructor of Shaolin Kung-Fu, i not only carry the series but a i recommend it to all of my students! The characters in this novel are famed throughout history and Shaolin Monks often named movements after these heroes and their adventures, like Wu Song - "Step Back and Ride the Tiger!" Even entire forms were created to commemorate heroes - "Li Kui's Double Hand Axe" and "Subdue the Tiger w/fists on Jianyang Ridge" forms come to mind.

(if you have never seen the Chinese Goverment soap-opera style production of Outlaws of the Marsh or "Water Margin" on DVD, you don't know what you're missing!!! Crouching Tiger/Hidden Dragon type quality - the goverment spared no expenses! Amazing fight choreography and drama. No English subtitles though, so need to have read the books to follow along!)

The only problem i have with the book version that Amazon.com is offering is the fact that it is not available in hard cover. The paperback version was the first one i owned (3 volume set, 100 chapters) but i've found hardback more durable.

In fact, i carry only the 3 volume HARDBACK (100 chapters) set at my school for a few dollars more than the paperbacks.

Enjoyed by generation and generation for centuries in China and Many Asian Countries, this classic will make you better understand China and Chinese people, and entertain you in a way which you never find in other books.No wonder it is considered to be one of the four great Chinese classic novels {other three books are "Three Kingdoms","Journey to the West" and "A Dream of Red Mansions". Mr.Sidney Shapiro's translation maintains the original flavor of the Chinese version.
Must read !!!

"Shui Hu Zhuan" (pinyin, this is how it is read in Putonghua/Chinese) is one of the four greatest Chinese novels. It is also known as "Shui Hu Chuan" and has been translated to titles such as "The Water Margin", "Outlaws of the Marsh", "All Men Are Brothers" etc.

It is generally accepted that Shi Nai'an is the author of this novel who is rumoured to live from late Yuan to early Ming Dynasty, around mid 14th century, though no one has ever been able to provide solid proof of his existence. Some believe that Luo Guanzhong, author of "San Guo Yan Yi"/"Three Kingdoms", is either the co-author or editor of "Shui Hu Zhuan".

Although the novel is around 600 to 650 years old, the story is about how 108 men and women became the heroic outlaws of the Marsh of Mount Liang (Liangshanbo) during the reign of Emperor Huizong of Northern Song Dynasty (1101-1125), i.e. more than two centuries before the completion of the novel.

I did read this book for a class, but as a major in History I realize that this book is ideal for any person interested in Social History, not just of China, but of any country. I personally am not interested in social history, but I still found the book to be rewarding and educational. It really helped to demonstrate the way young people react to situations as opposed to the older generations reactions. A Definite must have.

I had to read this out of print book for Encglish class my junior year in high school and since then have been searching for a copy. The characters are well drawn and it gives an intimate view of daily life in pre-Communist China. It's a book that draws you into the plot and you become engrossed in the characters' lives. Extremely well written and the translation stayed true to how Chinese people would write.

Simply put this is one of the best books I've ever read. If you liked this book I also recommend Christ in Concrete by DiDonato Colors of the Mountain by Da Chen and anything written by Upton Sinclair.

I read his book with curiosity. I paid attention to hisnarration of political events and found them to be chronologicallyprecise. The only drawback is that he had neutralized many of the notorious events like Tiananmen Massacre and the Cultural Revolution etc.

The Chinese revolution is a tragedy from the very start when Dr Sun had to ally himself with the communists and Soviet Russia, but Mr Shapiro apparently was more influenced by the events starting from 1947 and the full-blown civil wars between communists and nationalists.

One thing I would like to point out is that Mr Shapiro, like all the communists and the people of the privileged class (enjoying free medicare, housing, retirement pay, car, and free trips to USA and Israel), would be doomed to ignore the nature of Chinese society, i.e., communists CASTE society, where 70-80% of Chinese population still live, without the aforementioned benefits: the daughters of those peasants burnt to death in prison-like toy factories set up by the joint ventures of red capitalists and foreign capitalists in SEZ and costal cities, the husbands and youths being the coolie responsible for buidling the skycrapers across China, and the wives tilling the fields under the sun and in the rains for 50 years. Mr Shapiro would not understand that while gestapos could move around in China or out of China using multiple passports, the people in the CASTE could not do so, with miners continuing to die on the yearly basis in caveins and explosions, the oil-workers continuing to be contained in Western China, and the peasant-born children forever bound to their birthplace.

-- CASTE means the children born would have to take mother's birth place as their locality of registration under communist doctrines, for sake of social stability and their ease of economic exploitation.

Certainly, I would give credit to his account of Chinese history, especially the part about Qin's terra cotta sooldiers, the civil service exams, the ancient legal system, and the history of Se Mu Ren (color-eyed people) and the Jew history in China. History-wise, I would only add that Han Dynasty was not a succession of Qin Empire in any sense. In fact, the beginning of Han is a RESTORATION of Zhou Dynasty system, namely, the restoration of dukedoms and principalities, as manifested by the enthronement of those kings and dukes in respective localities of those dukedoms and principalities, under the supervision of nominal king of Chu (a shephard boy, said to be the grandson of last Chu king) and the two generals of Xiang Yu and Liu Bang (later the first emperor of Han).

I would say a critical analysis of the book is worthwhile, and a comparative study with other books such as the one written by Mao's personal doctor from year 1955 to 1976 would be of great help.

Sidney Shapiro went to China just after World War II. He had studied Chinese before coming, but he did not have a background in China, and had not planned to stay. He met and married a Chinese woman, and ended up staying on after the Communist takeover, working for the Chinese government as a translator. Shapiro is a very lucid writer, and easy to follow, but he seems obliged to rationalize some things about his adopted country that are hard to defend. For example, he says that Western missionaries left China after the war because they "were not needed anymore." Although I believe that his description of his life in China is an honest portrayal, there is always the feeling that he is sugarcoating policies that were clearly ill-fated. But Shapiro's book is just as noticeable for the things he concedes, such as the lack of press freedom in China. This book would be of special interest to individuals with an American frame of reference, because Shapiro is an American, and he writes in a very American style. Yet, he has lived and worked in China since just after World War II, a period of 50 years at the time the book was written in the mid nineties. Clearly, he has a better perspective on China than any other American born writer. You will not want to miss this book, but I would suggest reading a few of the others first, so that you have a little better framework from which to evaluate this one.

A broad compilation, easy to read, filled with information the average person (or me, an average Jew) would never have known. Jewish history from the perspective of non-Jewish Chinese scholars is both fascinating and curious

Books on this subject are hard to find. Shapiro is a American Jew who knows more about modern China than almost any Westerners, including armchair sinologists like Jonathan Spence. He writes with wonderful scholarship plus intimate knowledge about the country he loves.

My impression is that Jews were treated better in classical China than almost any foreign land in which they found themselves, with the exception of America. But ironically Jews didn't last in Old China. Rather than being persecuted for their religion or their ways, they were given almost privileged status. Somehow this encouraged their assimilation into Chinese society, and they had a hard time remaining as Jews after many generations.

I need hardly add that many Jews who found their way to China during World War II were a good deal luckier than those who stayed in Europe, although they didn't realize this at first. They eventually managed to find their way out to Israel - alive. So, despite post-war "hiccups" due primarily to Marxist ideology, Jews and Chinese traditionally had a benign if somewhat distant relationship.

As far as textbooks go, this one is not bad. The explanations are clear and the cases are straightforward. However, the organization could be better. At times, I think it would be better to focus all on one topic, say adjudication, instead of discussing parts of it in one chapter and then continuing the discussion in another chapter.

Another good part of this book is that they put the problems before the readings. This way you know what to look for in the cases before you read them. It makes it much easier to prepare for class.

Full of propaganda. One-sided book written in praise of China is seldom more than a curiosity.

Shapiro moved to China in the post-war era of egalitarian struggle for freedom from empire. He lived there for another three decades (the book is published in 1979), and this memoir covers those 30 years.

It is a valuable bit of the history of the changing times of a large and fascinating country, but the book's facts and honesty are questionable. Shapiro is an extraordinary individual who denounced his US citizenship and lived in Beijing as a Chinese citizen. The book is pure public relations, and he glosses over the Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution with irritating bits of patriotism. Of course, he was allowed to be highly critical of the Gang of Four, and the reader gets an earful of that housecleaning.

Nevertheless, the fact that An American in China is an eyewitness account adds interest, and the chapter of his visit back to the States in 1971 is somewhat engaging.

Only appealing to a real Sinophile.