Hong Kong author’s book makes Chinese history accessible to children around the world
- In A Basic History of Ancient and Modern China, writer sets out to teach children of the Chinese diaspora about their heritage in English
When Chui Chuen-shun decided to write a book on Chinese history and culture, he did not have academics in mind.
Instead, it was his grandchildren, studying at international schools in Hong Kong, who inspired him. He saw a gap in the market for English books aimed at children that discussed ancient and contemporary Chinese history in a light, accessible manner.
“Chinese history is sometimes taught piecemeal, especially in international schools,” says Chui. “This book helps give context and a chronology of events in Chinese history and is written in a succinct and accessible style. I hope this will help students understand how and why history happened the way it did and how it affects us today.”
A Basic History of Ancient and Modern China was published in October 2023. Despite its intended audience, the book is ambitious in its scope: in just one volume, Chui covers the history of China from prehistoric times to the present.
The 288-page book begins with Yuanmou Man, who archaeologists believe lived in Yunnan province 1.7 million years ago. It ends by discussing modern China’s most geopolitically sensitive issues, such as Hong Kong, Taiwan and the Diaoyu Islands that in Japan are known as the Senkaku Islands.
Chui hopes the book will reach the more than 45 million ethnic Chinese who are raised, educated and live outside China, for whom it is easy to lose connection to their ancestral history and cultural DNA.
