Pageant of Chinese History

Rating:
Summary: a perfect book in MANY ways!
Review: Do you find interest in history but notice that reading history books can become....a little... boring? Well this book is for you. It is an excellent overview of Chinese history. It will not tell you EVERYTHING, but for a person who is curious about Chinese hisotry, it is the one and only book for you! Also, history, especially exotic history, means nothing if you don't understant culture. For example, you might think that the punishments of China for not taking an embassy in Peking(Beijing--Pinyin) were well deserved. However, the embassadors wouldn't bow(or kowtow), which if you understood their culture, you would see why this was such a big problem. This book is PERFECT in that it explains the Chinese culture (literature, religions, and lifestyles). Even if you are interested in a long and elaborate study of Chinese history and culture, this book is great in providing you with the basics so that nothing will be confusing in the harder studies. I am usually the kind of person who likes history books ONLY because I look up the chapters which interest me. But for this book I couldn't help to read it from cover to cover!