In 1922, at just 20 years of age, farm boy Carl Rogers embarked on a journey halfway around the world. The China Diaries provides an intimate portrait of a young man exploring his faith, his purpose, and his personhood. Situated during the Chinese Civil War that birthed the Communist Party, The China Diaries also provides insight into the benevolent, yet at times ugly, history of Christian and Western influence in East Asia, the global YMCA movement at its apex, and Nobel Peace Prize winner and traveling companion, John R. Mott. "For the life of me, I can't realize that I am really off for six months of high adventure, with great experiences, and tremendous opportunities ahead of me. I can't help but wonder how much the trip will change me, and whether the Carl Rogers that comes back will be more than a speaking acquaintance of the Carl Rogers that is going out. As long as I have a will of my own, I guess it is up to me whether the trip changes me for better or for worse."
Complete with maps, photographs, historical context, phenomenological analysis, and a Forward by his daughter, Natalie, The China Diaries provides a window into the origins of Carl, the person, and Rogers, the founder of person-centered therapy.