The Beijing Olympics of August 2008 showed China to the world in all its dynamic modernity. This modernity has emerged naturally out of an ancient civilisation, one of whose features is a rich treasury of proverbs and sayings; many of them have their roots deep in Chinese history, yet are still in common use today.

 

Pavilions in the Air [ISBN 978-190529-96-76] is a collection of Chinese proverbs, with English literal translations and equivalent proverbs, by Frances Wood, Head of the British Library's Chinese Department and a noted author on Chinese subjects, and by Christopher Arnander, retired banker and author of Think Globally Spend Locally. The cartoonist is Kathryn Lamb, a contributor to The Spectator, Private Eye and other publications; she is also the author of several books about teenage life.

 

Excerpts from the book can be viewed via the navigation bar above.

Pavilions in the Air is the latest title in a series which follows the format of four similar Arabic/English and Italian/English illustrated proverb books. It is available for £9.95 from good bookshops; or you can get it for £9 plus a 15% discount (more for multiple orders) online from the publishers, Stacey International, 128 Kensington Church Street, London W8 4BH (TEL +44 (0)20 7221 7166):

http://www.stacey-international.co.uk/v1/site/product_rpt.asp?Catid=228&catname=