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 enlarge | Author: Rob Gifford
Publisher: Random House
Category: Book
List Price: $26.95
Buy Used: $4.90
You Save: $22.05 (82%)
New (36) Used (27) from $4.90
Avg. Customer Rating:  58 reviews
Sales Rank: 46284
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 352
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1
ISBN: 1400064678
Dewey Decimal Number: 951.06
EAN: 9781400064670
ASIN: 1400064678
Publication Date: May 29, 2007
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| Customer Reviews:
 this is the real China August 9, 2008
When I saw that the author worked for PBS, I thought propaganda, red flag, don't buy, etc. Well I bought it anyway, and was glad I did. Gifford does a great job painting contemporary China on a printed page. Gifford, obviously identifies with the Chinese, but he hasn't gone completely native. His ability to speak Chinese opens doors and allows him to relate the thoughts of ordinary Chinese and minorities living in 'China' to the reader. Here is my perspective: I loved Paul Theroux's RIDING THE RED ROOSTER. Theroux rode the trains, while Gifford travels by road. Theroux wrote about some of the obnoxious habits of the Chinese, like spitting and seeing all Caucasians as big nosed White devils. Gifford has not wrote that yet (I'm 2/3 through the book). Also, Gibbon's gives more in terms of historical background to bring the reader up to speed. So like Theroux, but different; but destined to be a classic. A great book which brings the reader up to speed relative to contemporary China. Strongly recommended.
 Shows a lot, tells too much July 28, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
For me, this book raised the perennial writers' struggle between showing vs. telling. I wish Gifford would have done less of the latter. When he presents characters and situations, the book can be downright powerful. But then he waters it down with what I think is way too much of him giving his own opinion about China, at which time the material slides into shallowness or possibly (I wonder) personal bias. I'd give this book 10 stars if Gifford would have let it really be about China, as opposed to his having forced China to share the stage with himself.
Audio version of "China Road" combines best aspects of memoir, news reporting July 22, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Some of the most compelling nonfiction
audiobooks produced for American listeners
today are about China. They tend to fit into two
categories -- the personal memoir, such as Peter
Hessler's "River Town: Two Years on the
Yangtze," and the fact-driven, such as Ted
Fishman's "China Inc." Both of these are
excellent works filled with fascinating nuggets
for anyone with an interest in China. But one
audiobook that outdoes them both is Rob
Gifford's "China Road" (Blackstone, 9 CDs,
2007), which combines the best aspects of
memoir and news reporting. I liked it so much
that I listened to it twice, a few months apart.
Before writing the book, Gifford had been
visiting China for 20 years and working there for
six years as a journalist. Planning to leave China
for Europe, he decided to make one long last
journey, a two-month trip of 3000 miles from
east to west along China's route 312, the
"people's road." He did it the slow way, by
hitchhiking on trucks, taking local trains, and
sometimes hiring a driver. With his fluent
Mandarin and his in-depth knowledge of Chinese
laws, customs, history and geography, he
becomes an imbedded observer who reports
accurately and thoroughly, but always with a
touch of humor.
As he quickly points out, China is not a country
but an empire. It encompasses one-fifth of
humanity, with a multitude of ethnic groups and
languages. Because the setting changes so
frequently throughout the journey, you could
listen to the CDs in any order without losing
much. Gifford says there's hardly anything about
China that isn't interesting, then proves it. He
meets enthusiastic and successful Amway sales
reps in the middle of the Gobi Desert. He sees a
truck broken down by the side of the road, but
his driver keeps going because of "the first rule
in China: don't get involved." Horse races are
popular but betting is illegal. No problem: you
can place your money on a "guess." Cell phone
salesmen do a thriving business all along the old
Silk Road route because there's perfect reception,
and everyone wants a phone.
China, says Gifford, is 30 years behind the U.S.
militarily; it spends $50 billion a year compared
to $400 billion. But far more significant, he says,
is the speedy change that is shaking up Chinese
society. Up to 200 million Chinese have left their
home towns in search of a better life -- the
largest migration in history. The greatest danger
to China's future, he believes, is pollution: of the
world's 20 most polluted cities, 16 are in China.
There's a chronic water shortage, and many of
China's rivers are dangerously contaminated.
Other negatives: Chinese women have the highest
suicide rate in the world; it's the leading cause of
death for Chinese women age 18 to 34. There is
an AIDS crisis, especially in Hunan province,
stemming from the extraction and sale of blood.
But the authorities simply try to cover it up. The
whole society, according to Gifford, is shot
through with corruption, which comes from local
officials, not big politicians. For example, trucks
are often stopped for speeding, but the fines can
range widely, so that police officers can pocket
most of the money without needing to report it.
The author says that China cannot be both an
empire and a democracy. That might explain
some of the contradictions that he confronts by
questioning his subjects to the point of
discomfort. He interviews a woman who
performs abortions on other women who are eight
months pregnant, and asks how she can reconcile
her role as a mother and a health professional by
killing fully formed babies. He interviews a
young Tibetan whose parents forced him to grow
up speaking only Mandarin at home in order to
improve his job prospects. He now teaches
Chinese to Tibetans, and the author probes to
find how the man feels about aiding the
conquerors.
Near the end of his journey, Gifford lands in
Urumchi, a very modern, high-tech capital, which
is farther from the ocean than any other city in
the world. A century ago, it took 45 days for a
letter to get from there to Beijing, and that was
considered fast. In the last 15 years, its
population has grown from 300,000 to 1.5 million
in 15 years. He marvels that it is almost
unrecognizable from the city he had seen only a
short time before. It's located in Xinjiang,
China's fastest-growing region for foreign trade.
Gifford's trip, and route 312, end in Korgaz, a
forlorn little town across the border from
Kazakhstan. Like the author, I didn't want the
road to end.
A "Seize The Moment" View Of An Evolving China June 15, 2008
Rob Gifford manages to capture the rapid change and flux--in conflict and concert with the past--that characterizes 21st century China as he travels Route 312 from the metropolis of Shanghai to the remote town of Korgaz, at the border crossing to Kazakhstan. Joining Rob on his "seize the moment" itinerary, the reader is given an intimate "backpack" view of a China and its people that is unforgettable, and in many cases irreconcilable with the image China portrays as a superpower . Through his vivid narration, the sights, sounds, smells, hopes, dreams and shadows of life for "Old Hundred Names" come alive in the consciousness of the reader. It was a transformative read.
A Brilliant View into Current and Historical China June 3, 2008
I have listened to the audio book of China Road while traveling back and forth between Ashland, OR and San Francisco. Rod Gifford does a magnificent job of weaving his present day experiences of traveling on China's "Mother Road", Route 312, the history of China and its many phases, and a view to the future and what may come next for this complex country. This should be required reading/listening for high school students. If you want a quick and broad view into the realities of this multifaceted country, China Road is it!
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