Available at Amazon and also for Kindle

Read an extract here. Reviews:Here and Here. Video interview at China File here.

The Tree that Bleeds- A Uighur town on the edge

‘There is still much that is unclear about what actually happened during that violent week in July 2009. But however terrible its cost – whether it was a massacre of peaceful protestors, an orchestrated episode of violence, or something in between – it was not without precedent.’

In 1997 a small town in a remote part of China was shaken by violent protests that led to the imposition of martial law. Some said it was a peaceful demonstration that was brutally suppressed by the government; others that it was an act of terrorism. When Nick Holdstock arrived in 2001, the town was still bitterly divided. The main resentment was between the Uighurs (an ethnic minority in the region) and the Han (the ethnic majority in China).

While living in Xinjiang, Holdstock was confronted with the political, economic and religious sources of conflict between these different communities, which would later result in the terrible violence of July 2009, when hundreds died in further riots in the region.  The Tree that Bleeds is a book about what happens when people stop believing their government will listen.

‘Holdstock has produced a timely and informative book’- Literary Review

‘A sharp eye for tension and local colour’- Scottish Review of Books

‘An accessible and informative account of the complex political, economic and social problems in an ethnically divided city.’ Asia Sentinel

‘A vivid eye-witness account of everyday life in one of the remotest areas of China.’ Asia Times

‘A riveting and well-crafted ride’ – http://www.edinburghbookeview.com

‘An insightful, often entertaining look into the emotions that continue to divide the people of Xinjiang’- http://www.farwestchina.com

‘A fascinating and elegantly expressed account of this little known province.’- Scotland China Association