The Last King of Shang, Book 1: Based on Investiture of the Gods by Xu Zhonglin, In Easy Chinese, Pinyin and English

China, 1057 B.C. The foolish king of the Shang Dynasty has gravely insulted a goddess. In revenge, the goddess sends a thousand-year-old fox demon to extinguish the soul of the beautiful young Daji, inhabit her body, and seduce the king into taking her as his chief concubine. Daji slowly gains control of the king and his kingdom, leading the Shang Dynasty towards chaos and disaster. But gods and demons are all watching closely and try to take matters into their own hands.

This book is based on Chapters 1 through 17 of The Investiture of the Gods (封神榜), one of the most famous novels in classic Chinese literature. It is a gripping tale of powerful gods, scheming mortals and epic battles, but it also explores the dilemma faced by loyal government officials who must choose between their country and its corrupt leader.

Now Jeff Pepper and Xiao Hui Wang have retold this epic story to make it accessible to Chinese readers of all levels, using a limited vocabulary, simpler sentences, and fewer proper nouns. Each page of Chinese is also shown in phonetic pinyin. Words not included the HSK4 list of commonly used words are defined where they first appear in the text. A full English translation and glossary are included in the back of the book. And an audiobook is available on YouTube and the Imagin8 Press website.

Jeff Pepper and Xiao Hui Wang are co-authors of dozens of best-selling books for English-speaking people learning Chinese language and culture, including the best selling 31-volume Journey to the West series and innovative translations of the Dao De Jing, Art of War, and San Zi Jing. Their books are available at the Imagin8 Press website and from most online booksellers.