Hardie Grant Books is pleased to announce the acquisition of Silk Silver Opium: The Trade with China that Changed History by writer and historian Michael Pembroke. Negotiated with Catherine Drayton from InkWell Management in New York, Hardie Grant has acquired world, print, eBook and audio rights and aim to publish on 1 July 2025.
Michael’s latest book tells the dramatic story of trade between Imperial China and the West; how it began in awe and wonder when silk first went to Rome two thousand years ago and ended in war and the collapse of the last dynasty at the beginning of the twentieth century. The China trade changed the world. Silk, tea and porcelain were unknown in the West until introduced from China. And for three hundred years, all the world’s silver went to China until the British introduced opium, which ruined China. This is a fascinating take on history with an eye to current events.
‘The story of silk, tea and porcelain - and the silver, then the opium, that the West used for payment – has taken me on a journey through two thousand years of history with more modern parallels than I could possibly have imagined. It has been a profoundly satisfying experience for me, and at times a moving one.’ said Michael.
Much about China’s modern relationship with the West is the product of its past inter-reactions, conflicts, victories and humiliations. The South China Sea was the place from where the ultimately destructive European sailing ships arrived. The Ryukyu Island chain was the place from where marauding Japanese pirates preyed mercilessly on China’s east coast ports. And Taiwan was where anti-Qing rebels established a stronghold in the seventeenth century.
Silk Silver Opium is a powerful tale, with clear implications for the future. It provides a basis for understanding why modern China distrusts the West and is unlikely to change that view.
“If you want to understand China you need to read Michael Pembroke’s fascinating book – it takes you on a journey through history that explains a great deal about China’s stance on trade and its relations with the West.” – Pam Brewster, Publishing Director, Hardie Grant Books
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Publication Details:
Title: Silk Silver Opium
Sub-title: The Trade with China that Changed History
Author: Michael Pembroke
Imprint: Hardie Grant Books
Publication Date: 1 July 2025
ISBN: 9781761451980
Format: paperback, eBook
RRP: $37.99
Rights: World (print and eBook)
About Michael Pembroke
Michael Pembroke grew up in England, Australia and Singapore and was educated at the Universities of Sydney and Cambridge. His books include Arthur Phillip - Sailor, Mercenary, Governor, Spy (2013), an historical biography that was short-listed for the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards; Korea - Where the American Century Began (2018), a military and political critique that was short-listed for the Queensland Literary Awards and the NSW Premier’s History Awards; Play By the Rules (2020), a polemic about American leadership that was published in the United States as America in Retreat (2021) and Trees of History & Romance (2009), a paean to trees and poetry. Pembroke studied French and Indian history at university intending to become a diplomat but afterwards succumbed to the law. He has written for Time Magazine, Al Jazeera, the South China Morning Post and Australian news publications.