When America First Met China: An Exotic History of Tea, Drugs, and Money in the Age of Sail [Hardcover]

Brilliantly illuminating one of the least-understood areas of American history, best-selling author Eric Jay Dolin now traces our fraught relationship with China back to its roots: the unforgiving nineteenth-century seas that separated a brash, rising naval power from a battered ancient empire. It is a prescient fable for our time, one that surprisingly continues to shed light on our modern relationship with China. Indeed, the furious trade in furs, opium, and b?che-de-mera rare sea cucumber delicacymight have catalyzed Americas emerging economy, but it also sparked an ecological and human rights catastrophe of such epic proportions that the reverberations can still be felt today. Peopled with fascinating charactersfrom the Financier of the Revolution Robert Morris to the Chinese emperor Qianlong, who considered foreigners inferior beingsthis page-turning saga of pirates and politicians, coolies and concubines becomes a must-read for any fan of Nathaniel PhilbricksAncient China collides with newfangled America in this epic tale of opium smugglers, sea pirates, and dueling clipper ships. Starred review. A rich, highly readable examination of the seeds of poppies, trade, greed, grandeur and an international partnership that remains uneasy and perilous. A smart, riveting history of what has become the most important bilateral relationship in the world.... An all-around outstanding work of maritime history. Master storyteller Eric Jay Dolin brings to life the American genius for commerce and its essential connection to how the nation grew... this is a timely and well-told tale. Eric Jay Dolin has a special talent for unearthing the fascinating but forgotten origins of our current cultural obsessions and now hes done it again. This fast-paced and deeply researched book is a must-read for anyone interested in Americas long history of competition and cooperation with China. A tantalizing high-sea yarn of fast-running clippers and murderous pirates and a profolÃ.