Hermes Scythicus: Or, the Radical Affinities of the Greek and Latin Languages to the Gothic:... Book

Fantastic recount of the history of Taiwan. Jonathan Manthorpe is a masterful story teller,who skillfully put his focal point on this tiny island of intriguing strategic importance, and then examined a confluence of anecdotal and incidental narratives that weave into the tapestry of Formosa. Slightly selective in his materials and fictional from time to time, he nonetheless never oversell his views, and manage to magnify without exaggerating. The book however spent a disproportionate number of pages on the koxinga and those pre-Japanese colony times, which is somehow disappointment to those who are more interested in the modern history of Taiwan, especially the forging of Taiwanese identity through the rapid changing tides of colonization, imperil rule, white terror, and the republic. Overall a pleasant read.