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The History of China in 50 Events

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☆ Chinese History in 50 Events ☆ As one of the oldest civilizations in the world, China has a vast, rich history. In order to assist with the study of Chinese history, this book has been broken down into a series of straightforward, easy-to-read vignettes. Inside you will read about... ✓ The Great Flood ✓ The Great Wall is begun ✓ The Terra Cotta Army is created ✓ Gunpowder is invented ✓ Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution ✓ Marco Polo travels to China ✓ The Forbidden City is completed ✓ First Opium War ✓ SARS outbreak And much more! This book will provide in-depth insights into some of the most important events in Chinese history while providing an overall context within which these events took place. Designed as an introductory overview of Chinese history, this book is the perfect resource for those who are seeking to expand their knowledge of China and world history.

48 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2016

384 people are currently reading
330 people want to read

About the author

Henry Freeman

52 books88 followers
Henry Freeman is an author and archaeologist. He has a passion for history and loves to travel the world exploring various historical sites.

Henry graduated from the University of Cambridge with a double major in History and Archaeology and shortly after that started his career as an archaeologist.

After traveling the world getting first-hand experience with history, Henry was determined to take up his dream of becoming a best-selling author.

He decided to partner up with the newly formed publishing company Hourly History writing short, concise and straightforward history books that never takes more than one hour to read.

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5 stars
136 (30%)
4 stars
152 (33%)
3 stars
111 (24%)
2 stars
39 (8%)
1 star
13 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
Profile Image for Sumit RK.
1,280 reviews552 followers
June 15, 2018

The history of China is vast and has been shrouded in mystery. Having said that this book does a great job in covering nearly 4000 years of known Chinese history in just 50 odd pages. From the great floods to the rise of Xia, Shang, Zhou, Yuan& Ming dynasties; From the invention of paper & gunpowder to the building of great wall; From the Opium wars to the ‘Great Leap’ & Tiananmen Square, almost all significant events are covered. Some interesting chapters include ‘Heaven's Mandate’ and did China discover America first, which will want you to read more about the Chinese history.

There are some notable omissions like Indo-China War, China going nuclear & joining WTO but it can excused considering the overall coverage. Do not expect an in-depth coverage of any era but it will provide you a chance to discover any era which you may want to explore later. Overall it is a good attempt to summarise the long history and if you are looking for a very quick overview of the history of China, this book is perfect for you!
Profile Image for Gian Andrea.
Author 6 books34 followers
April 3, 2020
As much as I'm passionate about China's history, and I always welcome any new work that can introduce people to this great culture that had such a powerful impact on the whole world, this book just simply does not live up to the expectations of the title.
Rather than 50 crucial events that shaped China's history, you get some interesting, yet disjointed information about China's past, peppered with typos, extremely bad editing, and statements that are simply not true.
All rushed and done in less than 50 pages.
Too bad, really.
192 reviews9 followers
December 25, 2020
Apart from opium war, Chinese history

Could identify the benefits the world enjoy from china and how it is really a big brother to Indians in terms of culture....
Profile Image for Judy & Marianne from Long and Short Reviews.
5,476 reviews177 followers
August 20, 2020
History lovers will likely appreciate this quick, accessible book about the history of China. Within these pages, readers become enlightened about China, dating back thousands of years. The good part is that this information is compact and straight to the point. You get to the core of the matter.

The topics discussed are chosen for their relevance and familiarity, but even if readers have heard about certain of these subjects, they are sure to learn more interesting aspects about them. Some of the topics brought up are: The Great Wall of China, Confucius, The Terra Cotta Army, the invention of paper, important dynasties, when the Romans first reached China, and many other good themes.

This book is short and an easy read. It is definitely worth the time to advance one’s knowledge in world history. The writing is engaging, not a dry history book, and readers can get through it quickly then feel like they’re taking away something good from the experience.
Profile Image for Bibliomaniac_girl.
1 review2 followers
March 26, 2022
Tue book is like a sneak peak to the Chinese history. Personally I'm too interested in history so I read the book and also out of curiosity I learnt something about China and it's history . Feeling like I had choose the right book to read after reading it.
And special thanks to Henry Sir who shares his great knowledge about Chinese history through the book with us.
Thank you Sir
Profile Image for Asderathos.
71 reviews8 followers
November 6, 2019
It was an excellent overview of Chinese history in general, but it was surprising the author admitted to the death toll at Tiananmen Square when in the last 3 pages he went full sycophant. A book this short & broad can't get 5 stars, but a book that ends with such sycophantry can't get 4 stars either.
Profile Image for João Nunes.
42 reviews35 followers
January 9, 2021
The last part about modern China it's absolutely miserable... For the rest, not bad.
60 reviews
January 12, 2021
Another Great History Read

I really enjoyed the recap of the Chinese history that I learned in my AP classes back in high school, as well as some of the more modern history of the nation. I hadn't realized that China's recent history was so checkered. Overall a great book I'm looking forward to reading the last installment of the series. I would also love to read installments on some of the Central and South American countries or even Ireland and Scotland.
46 reviews1 follower
November 9, 2020
A good read !

The author has very captivatingly summarized the Chinese history right from when homo sapiens stepped on Chinese hinterlands to the rise and fall of various dynasties, making and repair of the great Wall of china and finally the establishment of the Republic of China under CCP as we see today.
Profile Image for Joseph Allen Paine.
34 reviews2 followers
December 12, 2020
Great historical accounts

Well written and easy to understand. The only thing I would recommend updating about this book is the information about the SARS outbreak and how it led to successful protocols on how to deal with a pandemic. Maybe not so true in 2020? Reading this in 2020 with covid suspected to come from Wuhan, China, it would be prudent to include this data into such a fine book.
1,202 reviews6 followers
June 17, 2021
It covered the terracotta warriors, the opium wars, the boxers, Marco Polo, Confucius, the forbidden city etc. Hmm, well there was certainly a lot of history packed into 41 pages. I found it jumped around a bit and it didn't really flow. Wasn't too sure about the viewpoints on some of the events covered either.

.
Profile Image for Ed Barton.
1,303 reviews
January 5, 2019
Quick Survey

A short survey of Chinese history from pre-history to the Beijing Olympic Games. There’s a few interesting elements in here, but recognize that the author is covering 10,000 years in just a few pages. Good for what it is.
4 reviews
February 5, 2019
Quick and easy read

This very informative book provides a broad overview of the major historical events that have shaped China into its current state. Furthermore this book allows a historical understanding of Chinese culture that has been stigmatized by Hollywood.
6 reviews
September 30, 2019
Basic

It's a pretty basic survey of thousands of years of history. It's free so it is worth the money, but the time is debatable.
1 review1 follower
December 7, 2020
A very quick and basic introduction

Not much detailing on any of the events but good for introduction to the overall China history and perspective about major events!
5 reviews
April 6, 2021
I enjoyed the format which provided a short historical synopsis.
Profile Image for ᴏʙᴀɪᴅ.
19 reviews
September 26, 2022
Really well written. If you want a brief but good book on Chinese history, this book is for you. Its amazing how the author covers so much in such a little book!
Profile Image for Joan Lloyd.
Author 56 books56 followers
October 29, 2023
The good news and the bad.
Good, concise and logically presented.
Bad, Grammos and thinkos. A good editing would help
49 reviews
September 15, 2024
A good and interesting read.

Enjoyable and interesting read. A brief delve into Chinese history. Basics covered well and a good job done on the early history.
101 reviews4 followers
February 24, 2016
Time well spent

I didn't know what to expect when I began to read The History of China in 50 Events. The book was short so I read right through. I gave it a five-star rating because there is no four and one half. I enjoyed it immensely. However, claiming no expertise, I wonder if it is an oversimplification or if most of the essentials were covered. The short history, kindled an interest I never thought I would have, and I feel as if I could be mildly conversant about China. I am starting another about England.
Profile Image for Les.
2,911 reviews1 follower
April 28, 2016
I love books like this. A quick overview of important parts of the history of a land or a culture. It gives perspective and an opportunity to find specific items you want to study in depth elsewhere.
19 reviews2 followers
February 29, 2016
Great Overview!

If you want a very quick, 20,000 foot overview of the history of China, this book is definitely for you!
Profile Image for Chris.
65 reviews
April 16, 2017
As a first dip into Chinese history, this book is very short, easy to read, and gives an OK overview. However, that overview is only OK, and is too brief. I would love to have twice the detail on each of the 50 events, and even with that, this book would have been short. I wouldn't recommend this if you know anything about Chinese history.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews

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