Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom is the Chancellor's Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine. He has written, co-written, edited, or co-edited a dozen books. His most recent ones are, as author, Vigil: Hong Kong on the Brink (2020), and, as coauthor, the third edition of China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know (2018). In addition to writing for scholarly periodicals, he often contributes to newspapers and magazines.

• List of Maps


• A Guide to Pronouncing Romanized Chinese


• Introduction by Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom


• 1: From Late Ming to High Qing, 1550-1792 by Anne Gerritsen


• 2: New Domestic and Global Challenges, 1792-1860 by Stephen R. Platt


• 3: Restoration and Reform, 1860-1900 by Robert Bickers


• 4: Felling a Dynasty, Founding a Republic by Peter Zarrow


• 5: The Rise of Nationalism and Revolutionary Parties, 1919-1937 by James Carter


• 6: The War Years, 1937-1949 by Rana Mitter


• 7: The Early Years of the People's Republic, 1950-1964 by S. A. Smith


• 8: The Cultural Revolution Era, 1964-1976 by Richard Curt Kraus


• 9: Reform and Rebuilding, 1976-1988 by Timothy Cheek


• 10: Tiananmen and Its Aftermath, 1989-1999 by Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom and Kate Merkel-Hess


• 11: China Rising, 2000-2010 by William A. Callahan


• 12: The People's Leader: The Xi Jinping Era of Chinese Politics by Diana Fu and Emile Dirks


• 13: The Presence of the Past--A Coda by Ian Johnson


• Timeline


• Further Reading


• Index

Explores the history of China from the founding of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) to the present day. Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand this rising superpower in what promises to be the 'Chinese century'.