(The following is a post by Jeffrey Wang, Reference Specialist for the Chinese Collection, Asian Division.) In the course of the last six hundred years, many masterpieces of Chinese fiction have become classics and wielded tremendous influence over the thoughts and imagination of the Chinese people. Among them is the “Story of Water Margin” (水滸傳), …
(The following is a post by Yuwu Song, Chinese Reference Specialist, Asian Division.) The Sino-Japanese War of 1937-1945 started with the Marco Polo Bridge Incident on July 7, 1937, when a dispute over a missing Japanese soldier escalated into a battle. All-out war broke out shortly afterwards, and ended with the unconditional surrender of Japan …
(The following is a post by Eiichi Ito, Reference Specialist for the Japanese Collection, Asian Division.) An American friend once told me how, on the first day of his visit to Japan, he received an invitation to dine at the home of a Japanese family. While he enjoyed the meal, he was surprised to see …
(The following is a post by Jeffrey Wang, Reference Specialist, Asian Division.) “The Story of Three Kingdoms” (Sanguo Yanyi), created by Luo Guanzhong (1330-1400), is a historical novel and one of the greatest Chinese literary masterpieces. It is largely based on the historical work “Annals of the Three Kingdoms” (Sanguo Zhi) by Chen Shou (233-297), …
(The following is a post by Sonya Lee, Reference Specialist, Korean Collection, Asian Division.) Even though the Library of Congress did not start collecting Korean materials earnestly until the early 20th century, now its Korean collection is the largest and most comprehensive outside of East Asia. One of its strength is its collection of works …
(The following is a post by Yuwu Song, Reference Specialist, Asian Division.) Constituting one of the most destructive conflicts of World War II, the Sino-Japanese War (1937-45) started with the Marco Polo Bridge Incident of July 7, 1937, and ended with the surrender of Japan in August 1945. This war marked the culmination of the …
(The following is a post by Eiichi Ito, reference specialist in the Asian Division.) Every year some 700,000 visitors come to Washington, D.C. to view the famous sakura, the cherry blossoms (a gift from the city of Tokyo in 1912), and to enjoy the events organized throughout the city as part of the National Cherry Blossom …