A young Chinese woman falls in love with a Jewish man in nineteenth-century China in this evocative novel by the Nobel Prize–winning author of The Good Earth. In 1850s China, a young girl, Peony, is sold to work as a bondmaid for a rich Jewish family in Kaifeng. Jews have lived for centuries in this region of the country, but by the mid-nineteenth century, assimilation has begun taking its toll on their small enclave. When Peony and the family’s son, David, grow up and fall in love with one another, they face strong opposition from every side. Tradition forbids the marriage, and the family already has a rabbi’s daughter in mind for David. Long celebrated for its subtle and even-handed treatment of colliding traditions, Peony is an engaging coming-of-age story about love, identity, and the tragedy and beauty found at the intersection of two disparate cultures. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Pearl S. Buck including rare images from the author’s estate.

Peony has neither seen nor spoken to any man other than her father, a wealthy Chinese nobleman. Nor has she ever ventured outside the cloistered women's quarters of the family villa. As her sixteenth birthday approaches she finds herself betrothed to a man she does not know, but Peony has dreams of her own. Her father engages a theatrical troupe to perform scenes from The Peony Pavilion, a Chinese epic opera, in their garden amidst the scent of ginger, green tea and jasmine. 'Unmarried girls should not be seen in public,' says Peony's mother, but her father allows the women to watch from behind a screen. Here, Peony catches sight of an elegant, handsome man and is immediately bewitched. So begins her unforgettable journey of love, desire, sorrow and redemption.

This is a complete English translation of a great love story by Tang Xianzu, perhaps the finest of the Ming dramatists. Cyril Birch and Catherine Swatek reflect upon contemporary performances of the play in light of its history.

Trusted and treasured by millions of readers over 30 years, the Life Application Study Bible, Third Edition is today's #1-bestselling study Bible. Perhaps the most complete single-volume Bible ever compiled, this study Bible helps readers of all ages understand the language of the Bible and gives advice on how to apply its teachings to the ups and downs of everyday life. It has been thoroughly updated and expanded, offering even more relevant insights. With a fresh, two-color interior design and updated study notes and features, this Bible will help you understand God's Word better than ever. It answers the real-life questions that you have and provides you with practical yet powerful ways to apply the Bible to your everyday life. This edition includes the full text of the revered King James Version of the Bible. The words of Jesus are in red. Features: Now more than 10,000 notes and features Over 100 Life Application profiles of key Bible people Refreshed design with a second color for visual clarity Introductions and overviews for each book of the Bible More than 500 maps & charts placed for quick reference Dictionary/concordance 16 pages of full-color maps Christian Worker's Resource

Formerly banned in China, performed at New York's Lincoln Center, and named as an Outstanding Academic Book by Choice, The Peony Pavilion has an intriguingly diverse appeal.

A Study Guide for Tang Xianzu's "The Peony Pavilion", excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Drama for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Drama for Students for all of your research needs.

The book is the volume of “History of Literature in the Ming Dynasty” among a series of books of “Deep into China Histories”. The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC) and the Bamboo Annals (296 BC) describe a Xia dynasty (c. 2070–1600 BC) before the Shang, but no writing is known from the period The Shang ruled in the Yellow River valley, which is commonly held to be the cradle of Chinese civilization. However, Neolithic civilizations originated at various cultural centers along both the Yellow River and Yangtze River. These Yellow River and Yangtze civilizations arose millennia before the Shang. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest civilizations, and is regarded as one of the cradles of civilization.The Zhou dynasty (1046–256 BC) supplanted the Shang and introduced the concept of the Mandate of Heaven to justify their rule. The central Zhou government began to weaken due to external and internal pressures in the 8th century BC, and the country eventually splintered into smaller states during the Spring and Autumn period. These states became independent and warred with one another in the following Warring States period. Much of traditional Chinese culture, literature and philosophy first developed during those troubled times.In 221 BC Qin Shi Huang conquered the various warring states and created for himself the title of Huangdi or "emperor" of the Qin, marking the beginning of imperial China. However, the oppressive government fell soon after his death, and was supplanted by the longer-lived Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD). Successive dynasties developed bureaucratic systems that enabled the emperor to control vast territories directly. In the 21 centuries from 206 BC until AD 1912, routine administrative tasks were handled by a special elite of scholar-officials. Young men, well-versed in calligraphy, history, literature, and philosophy, were carefully selected through difficult government examinations. China's last dynasty was the Qing (1644–1912), which was replaced by the Republic of China in 1912, and in the mainland by the People's Republic of China in 1949.Chinese history has alternated between periods of political unity and peace, and periods of war and failed statehood – the most recent being the Chinese Civil War (1927–1949). China was occasionally dominated by steppe peoples, most of whom were eventually assimilated into the Han Chinese culture and population. Between eras of multiple kingdoms and warlordism, Chinese dynasties have ruled parts or all of China; in some eras control stretched as far as Xinjiang and Tibet, as at present. Traditional culture, and influences from other parts of Asia and the Western world (carried by waves of immigration, cultural assimilation, expansion, and foreign contact), form the basis of the modern culture of China.

What color candle is appropriate for a justice spell? Which herbs correspond to heart problems? What can you do to strengthen a peace ritual? How can you protect your home? When is a good time to empower a healing charm? Because of her exhaustive knowledge of this subject, Eileen Holland is the expert other witches turn to when they are seeking correspondences for magickal workings. By publishing Holland's Grimoire of Magickal Correspondences, she at long last makes public the information she has been sharing privately with them for years (and which she began writing for herself as a way of organizing the information she needed for her own practice of the Craft). Holland's Grimoire of Magickal Correspondences is the ultimate resource for witches, magicians and shamans, brujas and brujos, Druids, Wiccans, Asatru and Santerians. The most comprehensive book of magickal correspondences that has ever been written, it is for everyone who practices magick or creates rituals. More than 500 separate topics are covered with a sample listing as follows: ASSERTIVENESS (See also: Aggressiveness) Mars Color: red Animal: sparrow Oil: bergamot Plant: basil, cypress Goddess: Inanna, Oya God: Ares, Mars Assertive Action: (See: Action) To Learn to Assert Yourself Stone: angelite, danburite Plant: apple The correspondences included are drawn from many cultures and traditions, including Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Mayan, African, Afro-Caribbean, Buddhist, Norse, Hindu, Greco-Roman, Chinese, Celtic and Native American. Whatever the subject of your working, you are likely to find it covered here. If you practice magick, this will quickly become the most useful book you own and the one to which you refer constantly.

本教材將大學英語閱讀與翻譯相結合，旨在促進學生拓寬視野，遵循以主題式教學為主線的教學模式，同時融入思政教學元素，將實用性閱讀、翻譯技巧與各類題型有機結合，使學生在實際運用中形成對閱讀及翻譯技能的規律性認識並習得相關技能。此書閱讀主題涵蓋健康生活、大學教育、文學欣賞、珍貴友誼、經濟發展、先進技術、環境保護、文化交流、旅遊經歷及社會問題。依據這十大主題全書共分為十個章節，每章均配有常見閱讀和翻譯技巧講解。