What do you think?
Rate this book
China
Since Marco Polo, the fabled markets of China have drawn the west like a magnet. This ancient culture has been colonized by foreign powers, buffeted by war and revolution, yet China remains one of the most constant of international influences. It is a sleeping giant. Many fear, and some welcome its awakening. This presentation examines both the changing and constant face that China has offered to the world. The World's Political Hot Spots series explains the basis of conflicts in some of the world's most politically sensitive areas. Many of these regions are in today's headlines, and tensions recently have become violent in virtually all of them. Each presentation covers up to ten centuries of background, revealing how and why today's problems occur.
Audio CD
First published October 1, 2006
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 12, 2020
This is part of an interesting series called World's Political Hot Spots (I already reviewed some books of this series, e.g. Ralph Raico’s Germany.
This was about the history of China, discussing influential figures from Confucius and Lao Tse to Mao. It asserts that the Chinese are not a communistic people. It’s a very good book that I can only recommend, it gives you a brief introduction into Chinese history and politics.
This was about the history of China, discussing influential figures from Confucius and Lao Tse to Mao. It asserts that the Chinese are not a communistic people. It’s a very good book that I can only recommend, it gives you a brief introduction into Chinese history and politics.
December 12, 2020
A short dramatically narrated audiobook that goes over the history of China. It is only about 3 hours long so it is worth the listen. It keeps your attention so you get a good grasp of all of China's history in a short time.
April 27, 2016
Short and sweet.
I gained a good deal of understanding about the Chinese people. For instance:
"Chinese people look to their leaders with the expectation that they have to resolve the problems of the community. For that purpose, their leaders count with the blessing of the havens. It is clear to the leaders that they have to provide for the people in order to legitimize their rule. In the event of a change of power (by war or any other mean) it is assume that the replaced leader(s) lost the favor of divinity." This is an interesting view point as it explains some of the behavior of the communist party of China. They show a confusing mix of authoritarianism and democratic accountability which is rare in the western side of the globe.
"Queen Victoria enabled the opium war". British ships arrived to Chinese beaches in order to force the traffic of opium in the mainland. A letter from one of China's negotiators to the Queen questioned her for her willingness to impose the trade of a product prohibited in her homeland. That didn't impact the outcome. I guess she was not that noble a Queen after all.
Great book. Highly recommended.
I gained a good deal of understanding about the Chinese people. For instance:
"Chinese people look to their leaders with the expectation that they have to resolve the problems of the community. For that purpose, their leaders count with the blessing of the havens. It is clear to the leaders that they have to provide for the people in order to legitimize their rule. In the event of a change of power (by war or any other mean) it is assume that the replaced leader(s) lost the favor of divinity." This is an interesting view point as it explains some of the behavior of the communist party of China. They show a confusing mix of authoritarianism and democratic accountability which is rare in the western side of the globe.
"Queen Victoria enabled the opium war". British ships arrived to Chinese beaches in order to force the traffic of opium in the mainland. A letter from one of China's negotiators to the Queen questioned her for her willingness to impose the trade of a product prohibited in her homeland. That didn't impact the outcome. I guess she was not that noble a Queen after all.
Great book. Highly recommended.
June 28, 2014
Amazingly written. This book is clear, concise, and riveting. It covers the span of Chinese history excitingly and in fact, I feel that it might be too short. Sayle is an awesome writer. I am really impressed with how he connects different themes in Chinese history from the past to the present. For example, how the echoes of Confucianism show up during the reign of Mao It is interesting to see these themes of social harmony and conflict of the educated and uneducated, show up over and over again.
May 15, 2017
If you want to spend a minimum amount of time and effort to learn about China's history, this is a great pick. Well-narrated, the book is both easy to grasp, exiting to listen to, and full of insight.
However, it contains a lot of inaccuracies:
-It claims that Tian is a god in the sky (it is actually the sky itself)
-It claims that emperor Qin Shi Huang commissioned the building of the great wall (large parts existed earlier - he just connected them - and most was added much later)
-Claims that the Manchu people were descended from the Turks
And a lot of dubious claims:
-That Qin Shi Huang burned books is a claim now refuted by most experts
-The accuracy of Marco Polo's stories of his travels in China should be regarded with skepticism. In fact, some experts believe that he wasn't even there.
Other than this, sources seem correct. But it's still a pity that accuracy sometimes gets sacrificed for the sake of storytelling. And why tell quotes in fake accents? The Chinglish of Confucius sounds ridiculing and is often even hard to comprehend. But it pales in comparison with the narrators pronunciation of Chinese words...
If you want a really short introduction to Chinese history, this is great. It is both exiting and informative. Otherwise look elsewhere.
However, it contains a lot of inaccuracies:
-It claims that Tian is a god in the sky (it is actually the sky itself)
-It claims that emperor Qin Shi Huang commissioned the building of the great wall (large parts existed earlier - he just connected them - and most was added much later)
-Claims that the Manchu people were descended from the Turks
And a lot of dubious claims:
-That Qin Shi Huang burned books is a claim now refuted by most experts
-The accuracy of Marco Polo's stories of his travels in China should be regarded with skepticism. In fact, some experts believe that he wasn't even there.
Other than this, sources seem correct. But it's still a pity that accuracy sometimes gets sacrificed for the sake of storytelling. And why tell quotes in fake accents? The Chinglish of Confucius sounds ridiculing and is often even hard to comprehend. But it pales in comparison with the narrators pronunciation of Chinese words...
If you want a really short introduction to Chinese history, this is great. It is both exiting and informative. Otherwise look elsewhere.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews