For centuries, Western writers, historians, and intellectuals have been fascinated by China. In this remarkable book, Frances Wood shows how China influenced literature, memoir, and travel writing from vague Roman tales of silent silk merchants and medieval travelers such as Marco Polo, to Jesuit explorers, French poets, the Bloomsbury Group, and eyewitness accounts of war by Martha Gellhorn, Christopher Isherwood, and J.G. Ballard. What emerges is a fascinating portrait of the role of China in Western literature and culture.

Frances Wood is the best-selling author of Did Marco Polo Go to China?, The Silk Road, The Forbidden City, and The First Emperor.