China: A History

by Field Museum, Cheryl Bardoe

Discover the history of one of the world’s most influential civilizations. Based on the Cyrus Tang Hall of China exhibit at The Field Museum, A History traces the 7,000-year story of this diverse land. Full-color maps, photos, and illustrations of the people, landscape, artifacts, and rare objects bring the history of this nation to life! Young readers learn about prehistoric China, follow the reign of emperors and dynasties, and come to understand how China became the world power that it is today. The book also explores the role of children and women in everyday life as well as how religion, politics, and economics shaped the deep traditions and dynamic changes of modern China. This book stands alone from the exhibition and is a go-to resource for young readers looking to learn more about this powerful nation. It includes a timeline, bibliography, and index.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Middle Grade, China, Historical, Childrens

163 pages, Hardcover

Published January 15, 2019

Reviews

[laurel [the suspected bibliophile] · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

As a stranger to Chinese history, I felt this was a decent if not great overview that does its best to condense seven thousand years of Chinese history into 150+ pages (not including all of the pictures).

Because there was so much to cover in so little space, much is left out (like the building of the Great Wall—which fascinates Western children—court life, poetry, various influential cultures and ethnicities) or condensed (Mongolian influence, the 1000s-1600s, many dynasties). In an effort to cover a little bit of everything and really showcase how diverse and vast Chinese culture and history is, I felt like the book was more scattered and lacking context for a person not already familiar with Chinese history (like me), particularly in the beginning sections when the author bounced from location to location.

Much of what is covered focuses on pottery and ceramics, and its importance as archeologists uncover the lives of ancient Chinese people—which makes sense from a museum perspective but got a little boring, particularly as I wanted to know more about the politics of China's massive empire and its bureaucracy (some of which is covered fairly well—for the beginning parts of the empire at least), particularly in the last millennium (which was really glossed over compared to the Neolithic and early dynasties through about 600 AD).

It shows that world history goes beyond "Western" culture (particularly with presenting the theory that there are more cradles of civilization than Mesopotamia, something that was not taught in school when I was a kid in the 1990s), but parents and teachers should be prepared to provide additional resources for children interested in going more in depth and learning more about the major technological, political, bureaucratic and artistic advances of Chinese culture.

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

[Joanna Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for elementary to middle school history, or even for adults who want a condensed Chinese history. Lots of pictures. My 4th and 1st graders enjoyed it.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Chinese history, so I was pleased to find this short, concise book about the history of China with beautiful pictures. Saying that, I've seen a lot better choice for organization than this book. The first two chapters were great, focusing on prehistoric China and the rise of empires (mostly Qin and Han dynasties). However, after that all chronology was lost to random topics the book snapped on (like religion), giving us small details as opposed to a general overview. I still enjoyed this book, but when it comes to books on the history of China, this one wouldn't be one of my top ones.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book from the shop at the Chicago Field Museum, and it's been really fun to read. The book covers a very condensed version of China's history, mostly through the lens of archeological finds. As such, it talks about ancient history in more detail, and barely mentions modern China at all. The level of information here is definitely introductory, but what's there is clearly written and engaging to read, with tons of museum-quality photographs. I think this book is perfect for anybody who wants an introduction to the topic.

[Owen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting, informing, eye opening could all be said about ¨China A History¨ by Cheryl Bardoe. This book tells us about the history of China and all of the sections of time that went on through the building of the most heavily populated countries in the world. The way I got my hands on this book is when I was looking for a book in the back of my English classroom and once I saw this book I knew it was perfect for me because I've always been fascinated about the history of china and chinese culture.
This book is packed full of interesting facts that will be sure to make you say ¨wow¨. Some of the information that you can find in this book is about china in its prehistoric state, the rising of the chinese dynasties, and you can learn about what might be to come in the future of this massively populated country in the back of the book which I find really interesting. This book will also inform you about the geography features of it and some of the tools that the ancient chinese used and made. One of the people that are talked about in this book is Qin Shi Huangdi who was china's first emperor and it tells about his roles and what he did as an emperor.
¨China A History¨ is loaded with informing information up until very end. I think my favorite part has to be in the beginning where it tells us about the tools that the chinese used a long time ago like stone axes and the types of landscape that china contains like the Yellow River and the chinese northwest mountains.¨Stone axes were made four to ten thousand years ago¨, I really like this part of the book because it opens up your eyes and makes you realise how smart the chinese were thousands of years ago. Another part of the book that I really enjoy is towards the middle of the book where it talks about the roles that women had back in ancient china and how powerful they actually were. One of these powerful women that stick out to me is Lady Hao. Lady Hao was a chinese military leader during the Shang Dynasty that was such an important figure in the chinese eyes that she had a massive tomb made for her.
I personally think that this is one of the best books I have read in a great while. I would 100% recommend this book to anyone that enjoys nonfiction and information packed books. If you also like books that get right to the point this would probably be a book for you because right once you start reading you are having information being blasted at you which I personally like. I believe everyone should read ¨China A History¨ because of just how eye opening china is from america and how there country was built compared to ours.

[Ms. Arca · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/3. This text is a brief (about 150 pages with pictures interspersed) overview of Chinese history. It is obviously going to be missing a ton of information because it is so brief. For example, it does not go into PRC or modern day China— both of which are topics I think many people are interested in. That being said, I am endlessly amazed by how OLD China is and how many traditions or cultural pieces of history have been carried over thousands of years. This book will give you a taste of some of that. You get hundreds of thousands of years ago, some interesting tidbits about archaeology (the 4,000 year old noodles impressed me!), and then you also get to delight in the dynamic era of different dynasties (my favorite). The dynasties were written about without the panache that Ive enjoyed in other texts, but the writing is largely clear and does give somewhat of an overview. I also was glad to see some brief overviews of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism (my other favorite!). These could have been stronger, too, but there are the basics. The images were very museum-y which makes sense and has it benefits, but also makes the book feel like a textbook. I can see this being used in a class, but the lack of chapter by chapter overviews of each of these big topics makes it harder for someone to assign this as reading. It doesn’t have enough of a storytelling pull to be able to just hand to anyone, but its nonfiction so that also doesn’t seem to be the goal. All in all, I enjoyed reading this, but I am also a bit of a nerd and like reading about China. I can see how many people would find this boring, or on the flip side, too simplistic lacking in details. I’m not exactly sure how this one will land for the best way it can be used, but thanks to the publisher for sending it along, I enjoyed reading it.

I received this as an ARC from the publisher for an honest review.

[Mary Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book!
Great read for ages 4th grade and up. China is a diverse place - from its landscape of mountains, river valleys, and deserts to the hundreds of language dialects spoken and many interwoven philosophies. Filled with colorful pictures and artifacts from The Field Museum of Chicago, it tells the history of China (its land, people, and culture) from prehistoric times forward to today. This feels like a “museum exhibit in a book” because pictures and real ancient artifacts connect the story together to understand what life was life and how archaeologists have figured this out. You’ll see villages preserved by mud, burial sites, and even shipwrecks! China’s history is told in relation to events in world history to connect its history to other history you may have learned before - and busts some commonly-believed history myths! Check out the world’s oldest noodles! Did you know that printing with moveable type was invented in China 400 years before Europe? Learn how China’s philosophers and royal dynasties shaped culture. This book stands out by presenting a well-rounded perspective on China’s history and connecting philosophy and language to the culture of today.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book starts with prehistoric China and covers up to modern times (briefly). It is by no means comprehensive, but does give an overview of the dynasties that shaped China over the millennia. There are color photos throughout, including pictures of artifacts from archeological sites and museums as well as artistic renderings, paintings, and several maps. There is also a timeline, source notes, selected bibliography, image credits, and index. At the end of each chapter there is a short section asking the reader to imagine something about that time period and then further highlights things such as pottery, silkworms, etc. It's a beautiful book and a good overview. Useful for ancient civ curriculum. Some of the fonts used for the captions are too faint and are difficult to read.

[Aud · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent for older elementary/middle school kids with an interest in history. Solid, though quite brief, introduction to the long history of China, tracing dynasties, advancements in science and art, and major schools of thought and religion. Considering most American kids don't get much (if any) Far Eastern history at school, this could be a great introductory step to amending that gap.

It's also well written and interesting - always a plus. Good graphics, too, though probably could have used a few more maps.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent brief overview of Chinese history. No, it doesn't address everything, but what it does cover it covers well. I came in as a complete novice to the subject and now feel like I have a fairly solid knowledge base to build from.

I received a digital ARC from the publisher via Netgalley.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

reading history written for younger readers, like this book, is such a nice easy way to expand one's familiarity with the past. I learned a lot, and now have a foundation on which to build, if I wish to.

[Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of archeology and looking at the prehistory of China. Fun, though occasionally biases slip in. One emperor lived "under the thumb" of his mother..... Could do with a bit more history of women in China as well, but still interesting.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Resembling a middle school history textbook, the entire book was a short version of a country with a long history. Illustrations are magnificent.

[Erica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Easy to read but too brief and uncritical

[Raynald Provost · Rating 3 out of 5]

Est-ce que c'est un livre pour enfants? Malgré une belle iconographie, le texte lui est plutôt infantilisant.

[Cecile · Rating 1 out of 5]

Evolutionary dating.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great overview of Ancient Chinese history and I enjoyed reading it aloud a second time with my youngest son.

[Shaunesay]

ran out of time to read this one on the Netgalley copy.