Description

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A Traveller's History of China provides a concise but fascinating journey from the country's earliest beginnings right up to the creation of the economic powerhouse that is today's China. Stephen Haw carries the reader back in time to the prehistoric civilizations of 4,000 years ago, and from there to the centuries of China's silk trade with the less-developed countries of Europe. Some of the most significant inventions of the pre-modern world, including paper, gunpowder, and the magnetic compass originated in China and were then transmitted to the West. The author describes the glories of the Tang and Song Dynasties, which saw the creation of the great Chinese cities to the period of its decline and the efforts of Europe to conquer and subdue this giant land. It covers the tumult and triumphs of the Chinese revolution and the dramatic changes in political policies since the late 1970s, which have now made it one of the world's fastest-developing countries.

About the Author

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Stephen G. Haw read Chinese at the University of Oxford and has an MA degree from the University of London. He first visited China in 1980 and then lived there for two years as a student and teacher at the University of Shandong. He is the author of The Lilies of China and China: A Cultural History.

Praise For…

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"The author manages to get 2 million years into 300 pages - and he does it without gimmicks or colour pictures. An excellent addition to a series which is already invaluable. Whether you're travelling or not."