About Redwing Book Company
Redwing Book Company curates and distributes respected works in both popular and professional
traditions of healing. Our catalog serves students, practitioners, and lifelong learners in Eastern
and Western healing arts, from Chinese medicine and acupuncture to bodywork, philosophy, and
traditional dietary practice.
The Company
Every title we carry is chosen with care. We look for depth of source, clarity of translation,
clinical usefulness, and authors whose experience bridges scholarship and lived practice. These are
not trend books. They are working books, texts that help people understand health, treat illness,
and explore the deeper relationship between human beings and the natural world.
Our online presence allows us to serve a global community while still offering the kind of informed,
human support that has always defined Redwing. Whether you are just beginning your studies or have
decades of experience, we invite you to explore some of the world’s most meaningful literature in
cross cultural wellness and healing.
Our Roots
Redwing’s story begins in Boston in the early 1970s, when Bob Felt purchased the remains of Tao Books
and Publications at a bankruptcy auction. Tao Books had been a pioneering macrobiotic bookstore and
publisher. With two partners from the Boston macrobiotic community, Bob rebuilt the collection and
the storefront at 303 Newbury Street, restoring access to works on healing arts, martial arts, and
East Asian philosophy.
In 1973, Martha Fielding, natural foods educator, early prepared foods innovator, and beloved Boston
cooking teacher, joined Bob as partner. Together they shaped Redwing into more than a bookstore. It
became a hub for serious students of traditional medicine and philosophy. After Martha’s passing in
2016, the next generation continued the work they built together.
A Foundation in Early East West Medical Exchange
Redwing helped bring many foundational works in Asian healing traditions to English speaking
audiences. These included publications connected with George Ohsawa, massage and dietary texts from
Japan Publications, and one of the earliest US Tai Chi manuals by T.T. Liang. The company also helped
restore important Tao Books titles, including works by Michio Kushi that introduced acupuncture channels
and acupoints to English readers.
During the 1970s, Redwing assembled what was then the only commercial collection of acupuncture texts in
the West, including French language works by Soulie de Morant, Chamfraut, and Van Nghi. At a time when
reliable information was scarce, these books formed a critical bridge between traditional Asian medicine
and Western students.
Other landmark texts followed, including the US government translation of the Barefoot Doctors Manual,
early editions of An Outline of Chinese Acupuncture, and European works by Chancellor, J.R. Worsley,
and others. To make these materials accessible, Redwing produced one of the first distribution catalogs
devoted to East Asian medicine, at first, literally a single sheet of paper.
Advocacy and Education
In the 1980s, Redwing played a direct role in the development of acupuncture in the United States. Bob Felt
testified before legislatures in Massachusetts and California as acupuncture licensing laws were being shaped.
He also helped guide the New England School of Acupuncture through a financial crisis, a period still remembered
as The Crisis. The school survived and became one of the leading acupuncture institutions in the country.
Publishing Partnerships
Beginning in 1983, Redwing provided the technical and financial foundation for Paradigm Publications, which
introduced French, Japanese, and classical Chinese approaches to acupuncture and Chinese medicine to English readers.
By the 1990s, Paradigm’s reputation had reached China, leading to collaborations with People’s Medical Publishing House
and other major Chinese medical publishers. Together, these partnerships made authoritative Chinese medical texts
available to practitioners worldwide.
A New Home in Taos
At the turn of the millennium, rising real estate costs in Massachusetts made it increasingly difficult to preserve
and warehouse specialized medical texts, many of which were vital but not commercially large sellers. Rather than abandon
these works, Redwing invested in a publishing and fulfillment center in Taos, New Mexico. The move allowed the company to
continue supporting advanced, historical, and clinically rich texts that might otherwise have disappeared from circulation.
Today, Redwing remains dedicated to preserving knowledge, supporting practitioners, and making important works in
traditional healing available to new generations.