Delaware County District Library

The Amur River, between Russia and China, Colin Thubron

eng

contains biographical information

maps

index present

non fiction

The Amur River

Colin Thubron

between Russia and China

"The Amur River is almost unknown. Yet it is the tenth longest river in the world, rising in the Mongolian mountains and flowing through Siberia to the Pacific. For 1,100 miles it forms the tense border between Russia and China. Simmering with the memory of land-grabs and unequal treaties, this is the most densely fortified frontier on earth. In his eightieth year, Colin Thubron takes a dramatic journey from the Amur's secret source to its giant mouth, covering almost 3,000 miles. Harassed by injury and by arrest from the local police, he makes his way along both the Russian and Chinese shores, starting out by Mongolian horse, then hitchhiking, sailing on poacher's sloops or travelling the Trans-Siberian Express. Having revived his Russian and Mandarin, he talks to everyone he meets, from Chinese traders to Russian fishermen, from monks to indigenous peoples. By the time he reaches the river's desolate end, where Russia's nineteenth-century imperial dream petered out, a whole, pivotal world has come alive. "--, Provided by publisher

The source -- Steppelands -- The treaty -- The shilka -- The lost fortress -- The city of annunciation -- Black dragon river -- Khabarovsk -- City of the dawn -- The promise

general