Books

A Quick Case Study of Taiwan's Complex History

ISBN: 978-957-638-705-0

Island in the Stream by Jerome F. Keating Ph.D. & April C. J. Lin Ph.D. (co-author) is a compact, concise history of Taiwan from 1500 to the present, a period, in which eight different national flags flew over Taiwan. Using Chinese, Japanese and western sources this work gives a balanced presentation and is designed to be read and completed on an airplane coming to Taiwan thus enabling any reader to be up to speed upon landing. Of course it can also be read by anyone on the ground. An added feature of this work is the list of provocative questions at the end of each chapter. These questions raise issues (often overlooked in other interpretations) that the reader will need to examine and answer if he/she wishes to grasp the full complexity of Taiwan’s formative past. The first edition was published by SMC Publishing Inc. in 2000; subsequent editions were published in 2001, 2005, and 2008 making it one of the most current and up to date histories. This fourth edition is in its 2nd printing; a fifth edition is planned for 2014 after the results of seven key city elections.