Brush Talks From Dream Brook in the two volume hardback set from Library of Chinese Classics. This book is in English and simplified Chinese and is a wonderful addition to any library. This set of Brush Talks From Dream Brook was published by Sichuan Renmin Publishing House in 2008 and there are 1065 pages.
Brush Talks From Dream Brook
Brush Talks From Dream Brook is an extensive book written by the polymath Chinese scientist and statesman Shen Kuo (1031-1095) by 1088 AD, during the Song Dynasty (960-1279) of China. Shen was previously a highly renowned government official and military general and compiled this enormous written work while virtually isolated on his lavish garden estate near modern-day Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province. He named the book after the name he gave to his estate, the “Dream Brook”. The titular ‘Brush Talks’ is because Shen Kuo said “Because I had only my writing brush and ink slab to converse with, I call it Brush Talks.”
Brush Talks From Dream Brook in total contains 26 volumes, the content of which involves astronomy, mathematics, geography, physics, biology, medicine, military, literary, history, archaeology and music.
Brush Talks From Dream Brook is widely recognized as an important masterpiece in the history of Chinese scientific and technological development. Don’t let the fact that it’s over 1000 years old fool you, some of the work in Shen Kuo’s Brush Talks From Dream Brook is as relevant in the 21st century as it ever was.
Brush Talks From Dream Brook is one of Library of Chinese Classics and there are over 60 books in the series so far. Library of Chinese Classics is a ‘mirror’ format which means that there is a page of Chinese followed by a page of English. As they are bilingual, the books are extremely suitable for Western readers interested in Chinese culture, people learning Chinese and native Chinese readers who want to read an accessible version of the classics. Since their publication, they have been immensely popular and Library of Chinese Classics has also been translated into Spanish(Biblioteca de Clasicos Chinos), French, German, Japanese and Arabic.