Of course, the content of a book is all-important, according to Bershtel. Besides the already popular books on travel in China and on Chinese medicine and cooking, people in the West want to know how Chinese lives have changed during the country's transformation into an economic power. Also of interest are the issues people are talking about inside China and their perspectives on both domestic and global matters.

With a PhD in comparative literature from Harvard University, Bershtel is fully aware of the great barriers in transnational communication. And the fact that ordinary Americans are not well informed about China makes it all the more difficult, she says.

But a change of approach might help, and Bershtel suggests examining the kinds of writing Americans and international audiences find accessible. A strict focus on only information, facts, and figures cannot attract ordinary readers. Rather, they tend to gravitate towards history and society books with strongly expressed narratives and authorial voices.

When asked what kinds of books on China she would choose to publish if she had the chance, Bershtel says she is most interested in books written by Chinese authors in a variety of fields, from history to social science to popular culture. She thinks that the voices coming from China today are indispensable and believes that mutual understanding between Chinese and American publishers will come as a result of hard work by both sides.

Henry Holt and Company was founded in 1866 and is one of the oldest trade publishers in the U.S. It has an extensive backlist of important authors including Robert Frost and Norman Mailer. It also has a distinguished history of international publishing. As of 1985, it has been a part of the international Macmillan Publishing Group. Metropolitan Books is a division of Henry Holt and publishes progressive works for international markets.

(China.org.cn September 25, 2009)