The Silk Road Journey With Xuanzang

Rating:
Summary: Excellent biographical travel narrative...
Review: I picked up Wriggins' book mainly out of interest of the Silk Road itself. The book recounts the journeys of a Chinese Buddhist monk named Xuanzang in the 600's that travels a fantastic distance from China to the deepest corners of India in search of answers to his metaphysical questions.

I would have preferred a little more engaging of an account (such as perhaps Undaunted Courage by Ambrose), as Wriggins tends to describe each location and circumstance only briefly and then moves on with the narrative. On occasion, a few of the accounts are descriptive and moving, but on the whole, it reads more like a lecture in a history course.

This is a detailed book that will help readers interested particularly in the impact Xuanzang made on Imperial China and the world of Chinese Buddhism because of his travels and experiences. For an engaging travel narrative or for a more vivid picture of the Silk Road itself, you'll need to look elsewhere.