is undoubtedly a monument in Chinese calligraphy history and deserves a dedicated study. Xue's study will be of interest to historians of Chinese calligraphy and art, as well as scholars of Daoism, Chinese literature, and Chinese social and intellectual history."—Cary Y. Liu, Nancy and Peter Lee Curator of Asian Art, Princeton University Art Museum"A solid study of the social life of a famous, enigmatic work of Chinese calligraphy, employing close stylistic analysis of its calligraphic brushwork and composition, philological analysis of the content of the text, deep readings of hidden political meanings in period literature, and a touch of historical imagination to form a unique and exciting interpretation of the original significance of the work. Xue's study is a welcome addition to the small body of monographs on Chinese calligraphy, since it not only treats one famous early work in detail, but also sketches the broad arc of later calligraphic and critical practice."—Amy McNair, professor of Chinese art, University of Kansas
"For great works of Chinese calligraphy, their transmission through the centuries is part and parcel of their fascination. Lei Xue shows this paradigmatically for a most enigmatic example."—Lothar Ledderose, author of Ten Thousand Things: Module and Mass Production in Chinese Art
