Simon Winchester is the acclaimed author of many books, including The Professor and the Madman, The Men Who United the States, The Map That Changed the World, The Man Who Loved China, A Crack in the Edge of the World, and Krakatoa, all of which were New York Times bestsellers and appeared on numerous best and notable lists. In 2006, Winchester was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty the Queen. He resides in western Massachusetts.
"[A] fascinating read, filled with expeditions across war-ravaged China, harrowing escapes from the Japanese army, more than a few amorous adventures, and path-breaking scholarship undertaken within the ancient rooms of Cambridge University. . . . Winchester's smart biography does more than tell the story of Needham and his great book. Perhaps most significantly, Winchester opens up a window into China's past . . . A-" - Rocky Mountain News"Needham lived a life of grand adventure, and Winchester presents its dangers and pleasures with panache. . . . the exhilaration of [Needham's] life is immediately engaging. And so are the colorful characters who come his way." - New York Times Book Review"A masterful biography. . . . Winchester deftly captures his complex personality, a romantic adventurer propelled by intellectual curiosity. . . . Winchester has brought Needham vividly to life." - Boston Globe
Joseph Needham (1900-1995) is the man who "made China China," forming the West's understanding of a sophisticated culture with his masterpiece, Science and Civilization in China, says bestselling author Winchester. In a life devoted to recording the Middle Kingdom's intellectual wealth, Needham, an eccentric, brilliant Cambridge don, made a remarkable journey from son of a London doctor through scientist-adventurer to red scare target. In Winchester's (The Professor and the Madman) estimable hands, Needham's story comes to life straightaway. From the biochemist's arrival in WWII Chongqing ("the smells, of incense smoke, car exhaust, hot cooking oil, a particularly acrid kind of pepper, human waste, oleander, and jasmine") to his steely discipline when crafting his research into prose (to an old friend: "I am frightfully busy. You come without an appointment, so I am afraid I cannot see you"), Winchester plunges the reader into the action with hardly a break. As the author notes in an outstanding epilogue--a swirling 12-page trip through the kaleidoscope of contemporary China--he is at pains to place Needham front and center in our understanding of the nation that now plays such a huge role in American life. B&w photos, maps. (May) Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.
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