SEVEN VOYAGES

A broad account of the Ming dynasty’s maritime expeditions, led by a legendary admiral.

A dramatized standoff between pirates in the Strait of Malacca and the Treasure Fleet commanded by Zheng He (1371-1433) launches this work. Referencing numerous sources, the choppy narrative alternately plunges into geopolitical depths and zigzags among points of view, inundating readers with details that are difficult to digest without guidance or visual aids such as comparative timelines. “China was a nation divided against itself….Ethnic Chinese, Mongols, and Uighur tribespeople fought,” and similar declarations suggest an Orientalist-tinged lens on group identities, nationhood, and territoriality. The result: a hodgepodge of human geography mixed with economic calculations and strategic maneuvers in the name of Zhu Di (the self-styled Yongle emperor) that can be dizzying for readers navigating with no context or little prior knowledge. Certain chronicles, along with highlights of ship construction and nautical technologies, are vivid and engaging while scant maps, diagrams, and text panels do double duty in illustrating salient facts. In failing to center Zheng He—a multifaith diplomat of mixed ancestry who knew Arabic and prioritized linguistic and cultural knowledge—Bergreen and Fray sacrifice a cogent storytelling approach. Casting too wide a net, this volume flounders in its attempt to convey an intriguing chapter in anthropology and world history for young English-language readers.

This ambitious effort reads like textbook excerpts striving to be docudrama segments.