false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172436152m/175682.jpg 175682 4 In this tragic and powerful story, the two Opium Wars of 1839–-1842 and 1856–-1860 between Britain and China are recounted for the first time through the eyes of the Chinese as well as the Imperial West. Opium entered China during the Middle Ages when Arab traders brought it into China for medicinal purposes. As it took hold as a recreational drug, opium wrought havoc on Chinese society. By the early nineteenth century, 90 percent of the Emperor's court and the majority of the army were opium addicts.<br><br>Britain was also a nation addicted -- to tea, grown in China, and paid for with profits made from the opium trade. When China tried to ban the use of the drug and bar its Western smugglers from it gates, England decided to fight to keep open China's ports for its importation. England, the superpower of its time, managed to do so in two wars, resulting in a drug-induced devastation of the Chinese people that would last 150 years.<br><br>In this page-turning, dramatic and colorful history, <i>The Opium Wars</i> responds to past, biased Western accounts by representing the neglected Chinese version of the story and showing how the wars stand as one of the monumental clashes between the cultures of East and West.<br><br>"A fine popular account."-<i>Publishers Weekly</i><br><br>"Their account of the causes, military campaigns and tragic effects of these wars is absorbing, frequently macabre and deeply unsettling."-<i>Booklist</i> 169723 1 2 2004 The Opium Wars: The Addiction of One Empire and the Corruption of Another total:29|5:4|4:14|3:9|2:2|1:0| 29 107 50 7 2 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Wed Mar 12 18:00:36 -0700 2008 Wed Mar 12 18:00:58 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed May 07 08:18:38 -0700 2008 Wed May 07 08:30:00 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Mar 10 15:32:18 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 10 15:58:32 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Tue Mar 11 11:12:09 -0700 2008 Tue Mar 11 11:15:38 -0700 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Wed Jan 02 10:55:49 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 02 10:56:14 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Sat May 31 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue May 27 08:46:07 -0700 2008 Tue Jun 03 01:22:56 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Sat Aug 15 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 01 12:52:10 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 01 13:06:53 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Nov 07 20:30:29 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 07 20:30:29 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Jul 24 13:04:35 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 24 13:04:35 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Jul 22 03:11:48 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 22 03:11:58 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Jul 18 15:24:01 -0700 2009 Sat Jul 18 15:24:01 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Thu Jul 16 19:41:33 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 16 19:41:33 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Fri May 08 10:48:09 -0700 2009 Fri May 08 10:48:09 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu May 07 10:08:21 -0700 2009 Thu May 07 10:08:21 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sun Apr 19 02:38:54 -0700 2009 Sun Apr 19 02:38:54 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Mar 10 15:52:03 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 10 15:52:03 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Mar 08 08:53:52 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 08 08:54:32 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Feb 18 17:02:46 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 18 17:02:58 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Feb 15 14:24:57 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 14:24:57 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Sun Sep 28 05:01:36 -0700 2008 Sun Sep 28 05:01:42 -0700 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=175682