{"podcast":{"title":"New Books in Central Asian Studies","slug":"new-books-in-central-asian-studies-320391","podcast_index_feed_id":320391,"rss_url":"https://feeds.simplecast.com/VjNbNYWR","website_url":"https://newbooksnetwork.com/category/peoples-places/central-asian-studies/","image_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/cfa596c9-7ed7-4f69-ae77-ff3bec08a375/1d1a310b-0f41-40b7-92ce-6b7880191d7a/3000x3000/cf6e365e1e0337a47082be84bf790199.png?aid=rss_feed","author":"New Books Network","episode_count":200,"summary":"This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field. Discover our 150+ channels and browse our 28,000+ episodes on our website: ⁠newbooksnetwork.com⁠ Subscribe to our free weekly Substack newsletter to get informative, engaging content straight to your inbox: ⁠https://newbooksnetwork.substack.com/⁠ Follow us on Instagram and Bluesky to learn about more our latest interviews: @newbooksnetwork Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/central-asian-studies","last_synced_at":"2026-09-27T02:20:00.301922+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-central-asian-studies-320391"},"episode":{"title":"Whistling Arrows and Heavenly Horses: The Han-Xiongnu War","slug":"whistling-arrows-and-heavenly-horses-the-han-xiongnu-war","published_at":"2026-09-02T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-central-asian-studies-320391/whistling-arrows-and-heavenly-horses-the-han-xiongnu-war","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-central-asian-studies-320391","url":"https://newbooksnetwork.com/category/peoples-places/central-asian-studies/","audio_url":"https://injector.simplecastaudio.com/cfa596c9-7ed7-4f69-ae77-ff3bec08a375/episodes/3d713912-4e7a-443e-ae2a-96e2bfd3bd99/audio/128/default.mp3?aid=rss_feed&awCollectionId=cfa596c9-7ed7-4f69-ae77-ff3bec08a375&awEpisodeId=3d713912-4e7a-443e-ae2a-96e2bfd3bd99&feed=VjNbNYWR","summary":"John Ross speaks with Scott Forbes Crawford about his book The Han-Xiongnu War, 133 BC–89 AD (Pen & Sword Military, 2024) For more than two centuries, Han China fought a bitter struggle against the Xiongnu, a powerful confederation of horse-riding nomads from the Asian steppe. This was far more than a border war. It helped shape the future of China, transformed Central Asia, and opened the routes that would become known as the Silk Road. In writing this history, Scott followed the example of China’s greatest historian, Sima Qian (the subject of BOA episode 82 ), and took a biographical approach. We learn about remarkable figures such as Modun, the ruthless founder of the Xiongnu Empire; Li Guang, the legendary “Flying General”; the explorer Zhang Qian; and Princess Jieyou, a royal diplomat/spy who spent decades advancing Han interests deep in Central Asia. Notes: The full title of Scott Crawford’s book is: The Han-Xiongnu War, 133 BC–89 AD: The Struggle of China and a Steppe Empire Told Through Its Key Figures (Pen & Sword, 2023) To learn more about Scott’s work, including his novel Silk Road Centurion, visit his website : https://www.scottforbescrawfor... The Books on Asia Podcast is co-produced with Plum Rain Press. Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/central-asian-studies","meta_description":"John Ross speaks with Scott Forbes Crawford about his book The Han-Xiongnu War, 133 BC–89 AD (Pen & Sword Military, 2024) For more than two centuries, H…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1835,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/new-books-in-central-asian-studies-320391/episodes/whistling-arrows-and-heavenly-horses-the-han-xiongnu-war/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-central-asian-studies-320391/whistling-arrows-and-heavenly-horses-the-han-xiongnu-war.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}