Taiwan Lives: A Social and Political History

“An engaging and informative overview of Taiwan’s recent history that brings its varied historical residents to life and is unlike any book currently on the market.”―Evan Dawley, author of Becoming Taiwanese: Ethnogenesis in a Colonial City, 1880s to 1950s

“Portraits narrated as tales of people in Taiwan weave a fresh and innovative expression of the island’s heritage and modern history.”―David Blundell, editor of Taiwan since Martial Law: Society, Culture, Politics, Economy

“One of the strengths of this work lies in its narrative strategy. Biography, when used with care, can dismantle myths more efficiently than polemic. . . . The book also succeeds in taking Indigenous voices seriously. Unlike many surveys of Taiwanese history, which grant Aboriginal communities a cameo in the opening act before moving on to Han-centric statecraft, Taiwan Lives reintroduces Indigenous agency throughout. . . . [The book] deserves to be read widely, by students, yes, and by anyone who still believes that nations are made through the quiet accumulation of human decisions, human failings and human endurance. Alsford has given Taiwan something many contested entities still lack: a history told from within.”―China Quarterly

“Presents Taiwan in a unique, multifaceted fashion.”―Taipei Times

“Alsford’s book should be commended for its nuanced and in-depth illustration of Taiwanese agency, history, and the Taiwanese quest for freedom, recognition, and identity. It should also be praised for its interpretative framework of multilayered colonialism and its biographic structure that takes a deep dive of major historiographical issues through intimate life stories, an effective narrative strategy to get the readers emotionally invested.”―Chinese Studies International

“Widely read, this book can bring more nuance to popular western representations of Taiwan, which remain narrowly defined by sovereignty and security, and well-meaning but reductive platitudes about Taiwan’s democracy. An appreciation for Taiwan’s complexities – beyond the esoterica of international law and foreign relations – is seldom available to readers of English in such an accessible and enjoyable form.”―International Journal of Social History

Stories of migration, displacement, democratization, and transformation