China - Culture Smart!

The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture

By: Kathy Flower, Indre Balcikonyte-Huang

Narrated by: Charles Armstrong

Length: 3 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's Summary

For thousands of years, the Chinese believed that they had created a perfect social system based on Confucian values and tempered by the Mandate of Heaven. Dynasties came and went, but the essence of being Chinese remained essentially unchanged until the 20th century. Since then, change has taken place in Chinese society at an unprecedented speed: the country experienced the turmoil of civil war and revolution and then emerged on to the world stage as a global superpower. 

This book aims to put these changes into a historical context, explain deep-seated cultural attitudes, and guide listeners through a maze of unfamiliar social situations, in order to help them discover the pragmatism, genius, warmth, and humanity of this extraordinary people.

©2021 Indre Balcikonyte-Huang and Kathy Flower (P)2021 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Great Info, Poor Narration

Most of the information is great. I've been studying Chinese language and culture for over three years, so I can compare this with some other resources.

The history of China was pretty thorough (briefly) hitting on a number of key points and not shying away from the controversies. Some statements are outdated like the use of the term "Little Emperors" for spoiled children. The topic of race and racism didn't get enough attention.

Nevertheless, it's clear that the author(s) made an effort to cover a wide range of topics. And there's some healthy skepticism of official government statistics.

However, the narrator tarnishes the book with his butchering of Chinese words. Instead of Chairman Xi (SHEE), he says (GEE). For Xinjiang, he says GIN Jay ING which is so far off I only knew what he meant from context. And saying Taoism with a T instead of a D is a rookie mistake.

Should the narrator of a book about China be able to say basic words in Chinese? I think it's a fair minimum requirement if he wants to maintain his credibility.