Qian Sima, Watson Burton. Records of the Grand Historian: Han Dynasty II

Columbia University Press, 1996. — 522 p.This second volume of the history of the ancient Han dynasty consists of chapters dealing principally with the reign of Emperor Wu, one of the most energetic and strong-willed of China's Rulers. Here the historian is chronicling events he has witnessed and writing of the men he personally knows or has known. In Nagano Hozan's (1783-1837) words, "He makes us see in our minds the character of the men of the time, and this is why he is a great historian."