found this book at a library surplus book sale for a dime. i give it a hearty recommendation if it can be found. it is titled “taiwan- the other china” and is copyrighted 1971. the author is I.G. Edmonds. put out by the bobbs-merrill company. don’t see an ISBN. library of congress# is 70-156112. if it is out of print those crafty folks at caves should do what they do best.
just a basic retelling of taiwanese history. goes into fine details on some stuff- like what happened to koxinga’s grandson after he shaved his head, grew the rat tail and reported to the manchu’s in beijing. he thought he was gonna get whacked. the manchus instead gave him a title that his heirs held until 1912 (so what DID happen to the taiwanese royal family?)
even goes into the french era on taiwan and how the now much ballyhooed republic of taiwan was but a puppet of imperial china from before its creation.
also, i had been taught previously that it was the japanese that led to taiwan having the first rail line and the first electric light in all of china. rather, it was under the leadership of a benevolent warlord (sound familiar?) that taiwan made great strides. his name was liu ming-chuan. good stuff.
also a bit about that crazy european benyowski. and lots more. worth a read for sure if you can find it