{"product_id":"the-man-who-loved-china-the-fantastic-story-of-the-eccentric-scientist-who-unlocked-the-mysteries-of-the-middle-kingdom-paperback","title":"The Man Who Loved China: The Fantastic Story of the Eccentric Scientist Who Unlocked the Mysteries of the Middle Kingdom - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eSimon Winchester\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\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\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn sumptuous and illuminating detail, Simon Winchester, bestselling author of \u003cem\u003eThe Professor and the Madman\u003c\/em\u003e, brings to life the extraordinary story of Joseph Needham--the brilliant Cambridge scientist, freethinking intellectual, and practicing nudist who unlocked the most closely held secrets of China, once the world's most technologically advanced country.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 336\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.85 x 8 x 5.34 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 28, 2009\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51978827432237,"sku":"9780060884611","price":20.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0938\/3185\/6429\/files\/Yi9YSjhiMDErT3VJNnRKTnpjRnpLQT09.webp?v=1775810523","url":"https:\/\/ishookbooks.com\/products\/the-man-who-loved-china-the-fantastic-story-of-the-eccentric-scientist-who-unlocked-the-mysteries-of-the-middle-kingdom-paperback","provider":"iShook Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}