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The Cambridge Illustrated History of China (Cambridge Illustrated Histories)
 
 
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The Cambridge Illustrated History of China (Cambridge Illustrated Histories) (Paperback)

by Patricia Buckley Ebrey (Author), Kwang-ching Liu (Foreword)
4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

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The Cambridge Illustrated History of China (Cambridge Illustrated Histories) + Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook, 2nd Ed + Daily Life in China on the Eve of the Mongol Invasion, 1250-1276
Price For All Three: $75.49

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
To compress 8,000 years of a civilization's life into a single volume is a daunting task, but University of Illinois historian Patricia Ebrey does the job with authority and considerable flair. Writing with an eye to explaining recurring themes in Chinese history, she discusses ideas of order and statecraft, resource allocation and use, imperialism and population growth. Along the way she makes interesting asides, noting, among other things, that the Mongol conquerors of China monopolized the bamboo trade because they did not want the ethnic Chinese to make weapons, and she gives stimulating overviews of such matters as the manufacture of silk, hardwood furniture, and ceramics. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"Patricia Ebrey's Illustrated History of China is a fine book....With great economy of text, it outlines the major elements and changes in four millennia of Chinese history and social life; the art work and photographs, skillfully chosen and admirably reproduced, both illuminate the text and supplement it." Jonathan Spence, Yale University

"Of all the general histories of China written to date, this book is among the most comprehensive, objective, and well-balanced, and it will surely be a welcome addition to the bookshelves of teachers, students, and anyone else interested in understanding the broader evolution of Chinese civilization." China Review International

"...Patricia Buckley Ebrey masterfully synthesizes more than four thousand years of Chinese history in a single volume....The Cambridge Illustrated History of China provides an excellent introduction to the study of China and Chinese civilization. It offers a straightforward, yet complex account of historical events and issues that is well supported and augmented by the supplementary special-topic sections and illustrations....In the foreword, Kwang-Ching Liu expresses his belief that this book will eventually be regarded as a classic....Professor Liu's confidence in this matter certainly seems justified." China Review International

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Product Details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Cambridge University Press (May 13, 1999)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 052166991X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0521669917
  • Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #14,659 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category: (What's this?)

    #25 in  Books > History > Asia > China

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Customer Reviews

17 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (17 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
62 of 65 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Concise and incisive: A highly readable summary, December 19, 2002
By David Robinson (Oakland, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
With more than a billion people and 5,000 years of history, it's not surprising that most books on the History of China cover a brief period in excruciating depth. Patricia Ebrey's book is a deliciously self-aware overview, that delivers just what it promises: It covers all the issues and the illustrations are carefully chosen to amplify the text (not just a bunch of photos bound in the middle of the book). The book is beautifully printed--in China, of course!

Ebrey gets across the important point that we look to China and want a simple, linear summary, when China is complex and decidedely non-linear. (The Cultural Revolution as much happened to Mao as it was caused by him, for example). Moreover, she explains how our Western world view needs to see certain things (we always want the good guys to win in the end--perhaps they won't). This book would be great for a student at any level from High School library on to college. It could be used as a text and I'm also recommending it to US business people working with China. It's a wonderful introduction to the culture. The only quibble is that the Anglo pronunciation of pinyin isn't explained with a reference (for example, Qing Dynasty is pronounced "Ching" but you can't find that here). The pricing is very attractive too.

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35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent introductory book to Chinese history, June 15, 1998
By A Customer
This is one of the best books on general history of China I have come across in a long time. With much of academia still using outdated works by Fairbank and Hucker, Patricia Ebrey finally does justice to the tremendous progress the field of sinology has made over the past twenty years by bringing it within reach of the casual reader. This, along with Jacques Gernet's A History of Chinese Civilization and Ray Huang's China: A Macro History, are the three indispensable textbooks for any new student to Chinese history.
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44 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars gorgeous photographs, and content?, July 4, 2001
By "hodac" (Ithaca, NY USA) - See all my reviews
Ebrey succeeds in condensing the history of China into a compact and very readable book. It was probably one of the most enjoyable reading I had for a history class. The photographs are gorgeous, and the author really tried to balance social and culture trends with the political events. However, the book fells short when it comes to content. The 600-year period between the fall of Han and the founding of Sui was described in about 3 pages. The enormously important Warring States Period had barely 5 pages of coverage. The depth of content - well, let's just say this is laughable by college standars. Of course, it is impossible to cover over 3000 years of history in this compact book. However, when some of the most influential periods in Chinese history are reduced to bare footnote, perhaps it indicates that the author has been over zealous in trimming her materials.

That being said, this is still a good introduction. If you are clueless about Chinese history, this book serve as a great start. If you know anything more than the fundamentals, however, look elsewhere for information.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars Unnecessarily emphasizes "non-Chinese" vs. "Chinese"
First of all, this so-called illustrated history of China is mostly text and quite dry at that. A lot of history-telling is also quite confusing. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Gadgester

4.0 out of 5 stars Great 101 helicoptere view of Chinese History
Easy to read, this book accomplished what I was looking for: a complete high-level view of chinese history. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Olivier F Fontana

5.0 out of 5 stars An interesting perspective on Chinese history
I'm a Chinese living in China. Because of politicized history accounts in China after 1949 I have little interest in official history books in Chinese. Read more
Published on May 27, 2007 by Li Fei Yue

5.0 out of 5 stars Cambridge Illustrated History of China
Highly informative and readable; wonderfully illustrated both with photographs and maps. This was exactly what I had hoped for.
Published on March 21, 2007 by Iain Torrance

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Reference; Not Detailed
I used this book as a reference text for a course in Ancient Chinese History. The labeled illustrations are a pretty good reference for the components of the class that require... Read more
Published on November 11, 2006 by Linli Pao

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent overview of Chinese history
As a single volume overview of Chinese history, you couldn't ask for much more than this book. It is clearly written, objective and very readable. Read more
Published on August 20, 2006 by petro23

2.0 out of 5 stars Bored to tears
I faithfully read this book as a text for a class. The fact that it was boring wasn't such a problem because reading the book was unpleasant. Read more
Published on September 12, 2004 by Rui Jie

3.0 out of 5 stars Factual, but dry
One of the interesting things about this book is that it uses standard Mandarin Pinyin (Chiang Kai-Shek is Jiang Jieshi, Sun Yat-Sen is Sun Zhongshan, etc). Read more
Published on November 20, 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars A Pleasure to Read
This richly illustrated book (the maps are detailed and in color) is a fantastic survey of China's history from prehistory to present day. Read more
Published on March 14, 2003 by Bibliophile

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to read, beautiful to look at
This presents a very good overview of Chinese history that is both understandable and enjoyable. The pictures and photos add much depth to what can sometimes seem a linear... Read more
Published on November 5, 2002 by newchapter

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