It is quite possible that the number of Westerners who have
heard of Shanghai is matched by the number who have not heard of
the city of Suzhou. It would be understandable that even observers
with a passing knowledge of China might think of Suzhou as no more
than a satellite of its larger and more populous neighbor.
The truth is that Suzhou， a former capital of China，has a
2，500-year history that is much longer and more illustrious than
Shanghai's， featuring astonishing achievements in almost every
field of human endeavor - including politics， the military， the
arts， culture， education， and religion. Its classical private
gardens merit their unmatched renown， its old city is one of the
best preserved in China， and its modern history is that of a
vibrant pioneer that has established itself as one of China's
wealthiest cities. Allow yourself to be introduced to Suzhou， the
finest of Jiangsu Province's water cities， and savor the essence of
the old and the new in this book by author David W. Ferguson.