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Chiang Yee.
The Silent Traveller in Edinburgh.
Polygon. 1948

Exiled from China in 1933 and separated from his wife and children, Chiang Yee spent over 40 years away from his homeland. During this time he adopted the name The Silent Traveller and produced some of the most evocative, unique and enduring travel books ever written.

In this beautifully illustrated edition, originally published in 1948, Chiang Yee looks at wartime Edinburgh from a fresh perspective. Readers will be fascinated by his interpretations of well-known landmarks: the Castle, Arthur’s Seat and Calton Hill, while his vivid descriptions create an unforgettable picture of the city and its people in the 1940s.

Writing with wry humour, he brings the cultures and literary traditions of China and the West together, emphasising how much we have in common. He broadens our perspectives and encourages us to appreciate the richness of life that can be found everywhere, even in troubled times.

Chiang Yee.
Chinese Calligraphy: an introduction to its aesthetic and technique: 3rd edn.
Harvard University Press. 1973

This is the classic introduction to Chinese calligraphy. In nine richly illustrated chapters Mr. Chiang explores the aesthetics and the technique of this art in which rhythm, line, and structure are perfectly embodied. He measures the slow change from pictograph to stroke to the style and shape of written characters by the great calligraphers. It is a superb appreciation of beauty in the movement of strokes and in the patterns of structure—and an inspiration to amateurs as well as professionals interested in the decorative arts.

The London Times lauded the second edition of this masterly work as a “splendid book in which the plates alone would make a valuable acquisition,” and noted, “Mr. Chiang is the confident master, writing in a manner that is both businesslike and imaginative.” For the third edition the author has added two new chapters. “Calligraphy and Painting” discusses the dependence of Chinese painting on calligraphic training and techniques; “Aesthetic Principles” explores the fundamental concepts underlying every Chinese art form.