less expected subjects". Topics include relationship between art and literature, classics, classical exegesis, folk tales, humor and wit, literary criticism, literature by ethnic minorities, literature by women, myths, religious texts, supernatural elements, and reception of Chinese literature in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Reception Richard Mather stated that the book is "a monumental contribution to the field of Chinese literary studies", and that the "thoroughness and general soundness of its treatment of all periods and genres will doubtless remain the most comprehensive single source for students of Chinese literature of all periods for some time to come." Kitty Chen Dean of Nassau Community College wrote that even though the book's main text has a lack of Chinese characters and that "everything is translated" it is "difficult reading" because of the "many transliterated titles, authors' names, and dates". However, she "[h]ighly recommended" the book. Fuehrer stated that "nobody with a serious interest in Chinese literature can possibly disregard this comprehensive and most inspiring volume." He argued that what he would have wanted to see was "more detailed pointers to reference and source material" and he also argued that the lack of "focused and detailed" endnotes and/or footnotes are not made up by the presence of the further reading suggestions, and that "the lack of source references makes it difficult to trace a particular author's views and to contextualise them in the wider framework of Sinological scholarship." References Dean, Kitty Chen (Nassau Community College). "The Columbia History of Chinese Literature" (book review). Library Journal, , July 1, 2001. Volume 126, Issue 12, p. 89. Fuehrer, Bernhard. "The Columbia History of Chinese Literature" (book review). The China Quarterly, , 06/2004, Issue 178, pp. 535 – 536. Available from HeinOnline. Mather, Richard B. (University of Minnesota). "The Columbia History of Chinese Literature" (book review). Journal of the American Oriental Society, , 01/2003, Volume 123, Issue 1, pp. 234 – 235. Available from JSTOR. - DOI 10.2307/3217874 Notes Further reading Eberhart, George M. "The Columbia History of Chinese Literature" (book review). College & Research Libraries News, , 10/2002, Volume 63, Issue 9, p. 674. Hong, Terry. "Works in Translation: Terry Hong rounds up the latest Asian titles released in English." a Magazine, , 11/2001, p. 70. "Chinese titles include The Columbia History of Chinese Literature, edited by Victor H. Mair, the first comprehensive history of its kind in English, and Mistress and Maid (Jiaohongji..." External links