Book excerpt: Liu Wei-ping (b. 1915, China) was recruited as a diplomat and sent to Australia in early 1945. He was a scholar and not a politician, and when the People's Republic of China was established in 1949, he decided to remain in Australia. He formalized his academic qualifications, and in 1956 joined the Chinese Studies teaching staff at the University of Sydney. The book tells of pre-war China and post-war Australia, as well as negotiating life in a new cultural environment.