One book may be helpful:

"My Country and My People," by Yutang Lin.

It is a classic about China, Chinese culture and the characteristics of its people. Although it was published in 1938, I found that most of his observations and arguments still hold.

Sent by lakeaustin | 6:01 PM ET | 04-25-2008

I was excited to learn about the China blog.

My family and I just returned from a trip to China where my son sang with the Appleton Boys Choir on tour in Beijing, Hangzhou, Suzhou and Shanghai. The choir sang with a Chinese Children's Choir in each city, including the National Chinese Children's Choir in the Forbidden City Concert Hall.

We were on a whirlwind tour of the many sites in each city and didn't have time to really appreciate and absorb all of the culture we were immersed in. Your blog site is allowing me to do that and relive our trip in a new light! Thanks!

Sent by Allison Thome (toe-me) | 8:48 PM ET | 04-25-2008

You''ve probably got these on the list already, but I thought I'd pass them along.

"Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China" by Jung Chang (she came out w/ a bio of Mao about 2-3 years ago), and "Red China Blues: My Long March from Mao to Now" by Jan Wong (she's a Canadian journalist.)

Hope you're having fun out there. I'm looking forward to hearing the series.

(EDITOR'S NOTE: The writer is a host of the public radio program "Marketplace," which originated from China last year.)

Sent by Kai Ryssdal | 9:34 PM ET | 04-25-2008

Maybe you've contacted people in Chengdu City Life Magazine and The Bookworm bookstore.

Here are the links for people who don't know:

Chengdoo CityLife link:
http://www.chengdoo.com/

Bookworm Chengdu:
http://www.chengdubookworm.com/whatsnew.htm

Have fun.

Sent by Song Qiuying | 1:27 AM ET | 04-26-2008

A book from Dr. Edmund H. Dale called "Impressions of China 1983-2000" is another excellent book on China.

Here is the link:
http://www.trafford.com/00-0207

Sent by Philip | 12:56 PM ET | 04-26-2008

"The Woman Warrior," by Maxine Hong Kingston is the author's heart-warming fictional memoir about growing up the daughter of Chinese immigrants in California. It's also very illuminating in regards to Chinese folklore and myth.

Sent by Leah Triplett | 9:41 PM ET | 04-26-2008

It's wise to read some books about China before your trip; you need to have some background knowledge, at least some geographic, demographic and even some historical knowledge about China and Chengdu. But you shouldn't take too seriously any of the books that portray contemporary China, especially those written by the so-called "China experts."

China has been experiencing the largest scale of peaceful revolution that the world has ever observed. It's an industrial revolution, an economic revolution, a cultural revolution and a political revolution. (Yes, even a political revolution. Compared to the economic reform, the political reform in China is slow as a snail and no one seems to be satisfied, but you can hardly call it slow when you consider that it took almost two hundred years in the US from its declaration of "all men are created equal" to its final acceptance of that all men can use the same restroom. China's reform has only been thirty years.) Everything in China is changing, and changes fast.

The rapid transformation of the Chinese society is reciprocally changing ordinary Chinese's views on their own life, on each other, on their government, on outside world, and for some, on religion and God. This is especially true for young people.

Go to Chengdu with an open mind. I'm sure your observation and understanding of China is just as good as any of the books' authors, if not better.

Sent by Jian | 12:42 AM ET | 04-27-2008

If you're also looking for works of fiction you migth read anything written by Mo Yan, including his previous novel "Big Breasts and Wide Hips" or the just released "Life and Death are Wearing Me Out". "Garlic Ballads" is also good.

Feng Jicai's "The Three-Inch Golden Lotus" is a wry, well-told social and political commentary, masquerading as a comment on footbinding.

And there is, of course Dai Sijie's "Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress". B.D. Wong's audiobook performance of "Seamstress" is exquisite and the ideal companion for the long airplane ride from Dulles to Chengdu.

Sent by Tom Hill | 10:32 AM ET | 04-27-2008

You'll find a great story on China's search engine Baidu; do a title search for "Baidu.com's Poetic Struggle"

http://psychologyofthecall.blogspot.com/

Sent by stan marcin | 9:56 PM ET | 04-27-2008

I suggestyou read "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" by Lisa See.

We are the adoptive parents of a Chinese toddler and feel a very special connection to China and this book (it could be that the lead character shares the same name as our child) made me feel very connected to China and to Chinese tradition

Sent by Susan Hollis | 10:11 PM ET | 04-28-2008

The book is extraordinary. The author is Xinran. It is informative and heart-breaking. Especially women who have a vested interest in China need to read this.

Sent by Jacquelyn Gerwitz-Dunn | 10:48 PM ET | 04-28-2008

I'm not sure if you are traveling to the Wolong Panda Reserve. We did last summer and it was one the highlights of our trip to China.

A fun book to read is "The Lady and The Panda" by Vicki Constantine Croke. It is about Ruth Harkness who travels a similar journey to bring back the first baby panda to the States. It is true story and it takes place in the 1930s. It is a remarkable adventure.

Thanks for highlighting China!

Sent by Missy MacLeod | 2:29 PM ET | 05-02-2008

I have been fascinated by China and the Chinese people since I was a child and thought I could dig a hole in my backyard deep enough to get to China. My husband and I are making our first trip to China and will be in Chengdu the week following NPR's visit.

I have read a number of books about China and the Chinese. In addition to what has been listed already here are some of my favorites:

"Iron and Silk" by Mark Salzman

"The River at the Center of the World" by Simon Winchester

"China Men" by Maxine Hong Kingston

"Red Azalea" by Anchee Min

"Riding the Iron Rooster" by Paul Theroux

"Waiting" by Ha Jin

"China A to Z: Everything You Need to Know"
(I don't know the author)

"Sping Moon" by Betty Boa Lord

Sent by Sherry Coker | 10:08 PM ET | 05-02-2008

I had suggested a book, but somehow the title got nicked off. The book titled "The Good Women Of China" by XinRan is amazing. She writes the stories of women who called into her radio talk show and left recordings of their stories, their histories, their sorrows and memories.

Another interesting book is "The Early Arrival of Dreams - A Year in China" by Rosemary Mahoney. It's about a woman who goes to teach in China for a year. I really bought it because the title was great, but the book is pretty interesting too!

Sent by Jacquelyn Gerwitz-Dunn | 10:47 PM ET | 05-06-2008