{"product_id":"the-man-who-loved-china-the-fantastic-story-of-the-eccentric-scientist-who-unlocked-the-mysteries-of-the-middle-kingdom-9780060884611","title":"The Man Who Loved China: The Fantastic Story of the Eccentric Scientist Who Unlocked the Mysteries of the Middle Kingdom","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn sumptuous and illuminating detail, Simon Winchester, the bestselling author of \u003cem\u003eThe Professor and the Madman\u003c\/em\u003e (\"Elegant and scrupulous\"--\u003cem\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/em\u003e) and \u003cem\u003eKrakatoa\u003c\/em\u003e (\"A mesmerizing page-turner\"--\u003cem\u003eTime\u003c\/em\u003e) brings to life the extraordinary story of Joseph Needham, the brilliant Cambridge scientist who unlocked the most closely held secrets of China, long the world's most technologically advanced country.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo cloistered don, this tall, married Englishman was a freethinking intellectual, who practiced nudism and was devoted to a quirky brand of folk dancing. In 1937, while working as a biochemist at Cambridge University, he instantly fell in love with a visiting Chinese student, with whom he began a lifelong affair.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHe soon became fascinated with China, and his mistress swiftly persuaded the ever-enthusiastic Needham to travel to her home country, where he embarked on a series of extraordinary expeditions to the farthest frontiers of this ancient empire. He searched everywhere for evidence to bolster his conviction that the Chinese were responsible for hundreds of mankind's most familiar innovations--including printing, the compass, explosives, suspension bridges, even toilet paper--often centuries before the rest of the world. His thrilling and dangerous journeys, vividly recreated by Winchester, took him across war-torn China to far-flung outposts, consolidating his deep admiration for the Chinese people.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter the war, Needham was determined to tell the world what he had discovered, and began writing his majestic \u003cem\u003eScience and Civilisation in China\u003c\/em\u003e, describing the country's long and astonishing history of invention and technology. By the time he died, he had produced, essentially single-handedly, seventeen immense volumes, marking him as the greatest one-man encyclopedist ever.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBoth epic and intimate, \u003cem\u003eThe Man Who Loved China\u003c\/em\u003e tells the sweeping story of China through Needham's remarkable life. Here is an unforgettable tale of what makes men, nations, and, indeed, mankind itself great--related by one of the world's inimitable storytellers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Simon Winchester\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Harper Perennial\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/28\/2009\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 336\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.58lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.34w x 0.85d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780060884611\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e 06\/28\/2009 pg. 20\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWinchester, Simon:\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSimon Winchester\u003c\/strong\u003e is the acclaimed author of many books, including \u003cem\u003eThe Professor and the Madman, The Men Who United the States, The Map That Changed the World, The Man Who Loved China, A Crack in the Edge of the World, \u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eKrakatoa, \u003c\/em\u003e all of which were \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestsellers and appeared on numerous best and notable lists. In 2006, Winchester was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty the Queen. He resides in western Massachusetts.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Harper Perennial","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":43110574260339,"sku":"9.78E+12","price":21.49,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0555\/9255\/0515\/files\/img_940015f7-116c-4c70-9841-82d78d790d2c.jpg?v=1748979975","url":"https:\/\/bookstorenmore.com\/products\/the-man-who-loved-china-the-fantastic-story-of-the-eccentric-scientist-who-unlocked-the-mysteries-of-the-middle-kingdom-9780060884611","provider":"Bookstore N More","version":"1.0","type":"link"}