Chinese Idioms and Their Stories

This collection of one hundred Chinese idioms details the stories behind each one and offers a humorous and fascinating insight into the cultural history of China. From paper tigers to praying mantis, to the music of nature and heavenly robes, these tales have not only shed light on the traditional Chinese way of thinking, but also illustrated many of its ancient customs.

ZHANG Ciyun (Peter) born in Shanghai in 1949, graduated from Jilin Normal University, PRC with a major in English and later from Stanford University in the United States with a Master’s Degree in Journalism. Since 1980, he has had extensive experience working in different news agencies in the PRC. Also, he worked in the General Office of the Ministry of Communications as an interpreter and the Information Office of Shanghai Municipality as its Deputy General Director.