Books by Yuan Mei

Provides the first English edition of one of the world's most famous books about food. The Manual of Gastronomy is a treatise and cookbook written in the late eighteenth century by the Qing dynasty poet and official Yuan Mei.

The 18th-century Chinese poet, Yuan Mei, also wrote some short fiction - "Censored by Confucius" - which is reproduced here. The stories offer insights into Mei's views on crime, sex, the status of women, homosexuality, miscarriage of justice, ghosts, revenge and conservative morality.