Through the medium of women's bodies, Fan Hong explores the significance of religious beliefs, cultural codes and political dogmas for gender relations, gender concepts and the human body in an Asian setting.
...valuable for its survey of modern Chinese sports history and Chinese debates about women and physical activity-no English-language book has covered the subject so comprehensively...well written and enriched with thoughtfully chosen images from the historical periods discussed. ChoiceInternational Journal of the History of Sport"What a welcome addition this is to cultural history as well as to the history of sport and gender! If there still are individuals who harbour doubts about whether "sport" can be a worthy scholarly topic, Fan Hong"s intriguing investigation of the significance of bodily vigour, and its public presentation, in the emancipation of women in China should lay these to rest ... This is a splendid book. It benefits, among other things, from the author"s fluency in the language and deep personal knowledge of the culture ... It is hoped that Dr Hong will provide us with a work dealing with the period from 1949 to the present. We eagerly await a sequel."The China Journal, issue 42- " "the book makes an important contribution to the literature of the Cold War. It is pathbreaking in both analysis and methodology"China Information, Vol 12, No 4"This monograph is a major addition to the scholarship on Chinese women in the modern period. Throughout it is infused by the author"s enthusiasm for her subject. It provides a clear outling of developments and makes many rare materials more easily available. It deserves a wide readership both within and outside China studies.
