A short and hugely informative book for the layperson… Like a wise lecturer, de Bary brings the reader along to a fresh and rewarding comparison of Eastern and Western ways of thinking—and what the differences mean to us today… In the process, he has also written a succinct and valuable guide to the culture by which East Asia still lives.
-- Frank Gibney Los Angeles Times Book Review
The work is the personal manifesto of a scholar who is master of the broad overview and bold generalization which is the essence of profound erudition, and who knows that a properly chosen detail can highlight a given topic more boldly than a lengthy argument.
-- Martina Deuchler Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
Bears the unmistakable imprint of de Bary’s erudition and bristles with provocative insights and useful comparisons…de Bary has done an excellent job.
-- Richard J. Smith Journal of Asian Studies