Richard Strassberg received his Ph.D. in Chinese from Princeton University and has been teaching at UCLA since 1978. He specializes in pre-modern Chinese literature with focus on narrative and drama. Among his most recent research interests include travel writing, mythology, dream narratives, illustrated literature, and traditional Chinese garden culture. His recent publications include Inscribed Landscapes: Travel Writing from Imperial China (1994), A Chinese Bestiary: Strange Creatures from the Guideways Through Mountains and Seas (2002), and Wandering Spirits: Chen Shiyuan's Encyclopedia of Dreams (2008). He is a Senior Fellow at Dumbarton Oaks and serves on the Advisory Committee for the Liu Fang Yuan Chinese Garden at the Huntington. He is currently at work on an anthology of literary accounts of Chinese gardens.