My country and my people, written by Lin Yutang, gives a unique and sweeping insight into life in China, and in particular the differences between China and the West. Chapters include The Chinese People and Their Origins, The Chinese Character, The Chinese Mind, Chinese Ideals and Religion, Woman's Life, Social and Political Life, Literature, Art and Architecture, The Pleasures of Life, Home and Garden, Eating and Drinking, The End of Life, The Search for Leadership, and The Way Out.

http://www.amazon.com/My-Country-People-Yutang-Lin/dp/9971642050

Lin Yutang was a born into a Christian family, and after choosing Taoism and Buddhism returned to Christianity. He we was educated at Harvard, and lived most of his life in America, primarily a writer and translator. His translations of Chinese texts were popular in America.

E Bruce Brooks from the UMASS wrote something about Lin:

http://www.umass.edu/wsp/sinology/persons/lin.html

Pearl Buck wrote the preface.