"Someday I'm going to teach these greedy people a lesson," said Judge Dee, a tall broad-shouldered man with a foot-long black beard and matching side-whiskers. The legendary figure comes back! He continues to solve baffling cases in 7th century China, but at a faster pace. Tales of Judge Dee is Zhu Xiao Di's debut in fiction. His other books include: Thirty Years in a Red House, a Memoir of Childhood and Youth in Communist China (University of Massachusetts Press, 1998, paperback from the same press, 1999, new edition by Penguin Books India, 2000) and Father: Famous Writers Celebrate the Bond between Father and Child(Pocket Books, 2000, contributing along with John Updike, Annie Proulx, Dean Koontz, Calvin Trillin, and others.) Boston Globe calls his memoir "a splendid lesson in 20th-century Chinese history," and Library Journal says it is "engrossing and engaging."

Murder, Mystery, and Courtroom Drama─Chinese Style! Sanxia wuyi (later revised and called Qixia wuyi) is a semi-historical narrative of adventure, crime-detection, and courtroom drama. It revolves around the famed Song dynasty magistrate, Bao Zheng(999-1072), who is more commonly known as Magistrate Bao (Bao Gong) and is the quintessential incorruptible government official. This novel, derived from the oral narrative attributed to the Qing storyteller Shi Yukun(fl. 1870s), was first published in 1879, after undergoing a complex and fascinating textual evolution. The non-historical component of narrative, which represents the creative genius of the storyteller and his tradition, revolves around a group of compelling heroes and gallants─foremost among them are Zhan Zhao, Hero Par Excellence, Jiang Ping, Diplomat Supreme and Unparalleled Underwater Genius, Ai Hu, Youngest of the Tried and True, and the beloved Bai Yutang, Gallant of Incomparable Elegance and Passion.

When Trevor Grove was called up for Jury service he became so intrigued with the justice system that he wrote a successful book about it - The Juryman's Tale. Now he's joined the magistracy and gives a fascinating, funny and insightful account of just how the magistracy works at a time of great change. Lay magistrates deal with more than 95 per cent of all criminal cases in England and Wales, yet they are all volunteers, drawn from local communities, with no legal training or special qualifications, and are not paid a penny for what they do. Astonishingly little is known about what it is like to serve as a magistrate. (Each year 5,000 people apply to become magistrates; only 25 per cent are successful.) This book is the first for many years to shed light on the experience. Interweaving his own personal experience of becoming a magistrate in north London with general observations, relevant interviews and a little history, Trevor Grove takes us on a fascinating journey into this extraordinary and unique institution. He has visited courts all over the country to talk to magistrates and observe how crimes and criminals differ from region to region, and how the 'benches' dealing with them differ too. He has visited jails and Young Offenders' Institutions and he has interviewed all of the principal players, from the Lord Chief Justice and Home Secretary, to more integral characters such as justices' clerks, ushers, probation officers, local police and offenders. His journey uncovers a remarkable act of national faith in the good sense of ordinary people, which says a great deal more about the strength and health of our democracy than is sufficiently appreciated.

This Collection, Probably The First Ever Of Its Kind, Of A Full Hundred Tales Culled From Sages Known And Unknown, Through Decades Of A Sustained Interest By Its Present Author, Should Prove As Revealing As They Have Proved For Centuries Past.