Tienkuo: The Heavenly Kingdom

It was the year 1858 and three young run-aways; Jason Brandt, son of a Hong Kong missionary, his friend Wu Sek-chong and the beautiful and defiant Black Jade; set off to find the capital of the rebel Taiping Tienkuo, The Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace. Established in 1851 by a failed civil service candidate who claimed to be the little brother of Christ, the semi-Christian Taiping Kingdom, had made a dramatic and bloody bid to overthrow the Confucian rule of the Ching Dynasty. (More information available at Leibo's World Watch on the web.)

The three young people's search for the Heavenly Kingdom and what they eventually found among the Taipings is the central plot of this historical novel of journey and self-discovery in 19th century China. Written by Professor of East Asian studies this novel was created not only to entertain but to teach about political, social and cultural life in China during the mid nineteenth century.

Li Bo is the pseudonym of a Professor of Asian Studies.