Insight to China imbues ‘The Last Days of Old Beijing’

By TISH WELLS

“The Last Days of Old Beijing” by Michael Meyer ( Walker Company, $25.99)

Michael Meyer’s “The Last Days of Old Beijing” is a mixture of romanticism and Chinese pragmatism and an attractive, if meandering, profile of a city in ceaseless change. The romance, and Meyer’s sorrow, comes from the destruction of neighborhoods and communities that’s transforming the city for the 2008 Olympics. It’s the obliteration of history that Meyer, who has written for Time and Smithsonian magazines, describes with crispness and detail. His insight and sympathy for the Chinese people and the city comes through on every page.

Shining through the wistfulness are hard practical Chinese people: Miss Zhu, an English teacher, and her husband; Old Zhang who fought with the city for a larger settlement when told he had to move; and the Widow, who provides Meyer his breakfast of steamed dumplings.

The Beijing hutong — the thin lanes that run between courtyard houses, are the stars of the book. The hutong’s lack of amenities, including private toilets, are outweighed by the sense of community where everyone watches over each other.

The community of the hutong is endangered by unnamed municipal officials and real estate developers. Their looming presence is “The Hand”, a Chinese character meaning “raze” or “tear down”, mysteriously sketched on hutong walls, designating the next to be leveled. Residents are offered “glassy high-rise” apartments far away from their communities and “no” is not accepted as an answer.

The uncertainty of the future permeates China and the 2008 Olympics looms over everything. “The Last Days” will give you a good introduction to Beijing just in time for the Summer Games.