Blades of Grass

George Aylwin Hogg was a man of remarkable dedication and honour. Though he died in 1945 at the age of thirty, Aylwins name and legacy is remembered in China to this daywhere as a wise and noble friend to the people of China, he immersed himself in the culture and life of the Chinese people whom he served in his mission. In Blades of Grass: The Story of George Aylwin Hogg, author and nephew of the late Mr Hogg, Mark Aylwin Thomas, explores his uncles own letters and writings and shares this astonishing life story of perseverance, service, and dedication. Thomas offers a personal and compelling window into the character of this remarkable man, and Hoggs own words lend an authentic and distinctive insight into his servicetraining young Chinese men in their vocations in the remote confines of Northern China in Shandan. George Aylwin Hogg was part of a vision to create a unique form of industrial training on which to base the reconstruction of industry for a new post-war China. While a vignette of Aylwins life was portrayed in Roger Spottiswoodes 2008 film, The Children of Huang Shi, the full picture of this remarkable lifeoften painted with Aylwins own wordsshows how this young Englishmans life was deeply interwoven in the lives of the men and people he served.