Four thousand years of history fitted into a single volume means there is going to be a great deal of summary, especially when the subject is China, which was developing written history when my own European ancestors were still running around in the woods.

So the question becomes, where to summarize and what details to include to illustrate one’s point? It’s for the expert to evaluate Wood’s choices in a judgment call. All I—a learner—can confidently say is that I got very involved in this book. I enjoyed great parts of it, specifically the details Wood chose from very recent archaeological finds that are shedding new light on China’s ancient past. Such as letters from homesick soldiers in the Qin Army and Han garrisons on Silk Road watchtowers, some written on sticks, others on silk, monks, mid-range and low ranking officials, women, slaves.

Each dynasty has its illustrative detail, the highlights of its rule, and how it failed. There is plenty of attention paid to China’s geography, specifically the rivers, and how life rose and changed around these rivers—including the utter devastation when the rivers flooded or altered course. 

Confucius is summarized, Mencius barely gets mentioned, but their legacy is worked through the summaries of the evolution of imperial government. I really appreciated the attention paid to the poets, both male and female, and the marvelous descriptions of ancient cities, such as Chang’An. There is also superlative focus on specific works of art that convey an idea of its time as well as its timeless beauty.

The astounding ructions of Chinese history in the twentieth century rightly would take up volumes, but Wood navigates his way by use of diaries, journals, and in more modern times, witness accounts. He includes everyone—grand families with long pedigrees going back centuries, even millenia, farmers, protestors. 

I think my favorite bit was the vivid depiction of Song-era Kaifeng, and the description of the amazing scroll-painting “Festival on the River”—which is a highly detailed trip all through the city, from river bank to urban center and out. I would LOVE to see that in person—it’s as close to a time machine glimpse of the past as we can get.

Altogether an absorbing read, enjoyable in many places, heart-breaking in others: when China turned on itself in its wars, millions died, rivaling the profoundly disastrous effects of drought, quake, famine, flooding, and plague. Yet through it all the Chinese rose again and rebuilt, hearkening to their past, their thinking shaped by the enlightened views of ancient sages.

I received an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

When I requested this book, I expected it to be large and cover a lot of history all at once. It did that, but it still felt very superficial to me. I was looking for some deep dives into important eras, but it kept very superficial on the topics at hand. So while it was good and easy to read, I was looking for something deeper. It's great to pinpoint areas that you'd want to learn more about, though! For example, I'd like to know more about the Japanese occupation during WWII or the more current policies/trends, both topics that I felt didn't get enough time on the page in this book.

A single-volume history of China, offering a look into the past of the global superpower and its significance today. Michael Wood has travelled the length and breadth of China, the world’s oldest civilization and longest-lasting state, to tell a thrilling story of intense drama, fabulous creativity, and deep humanity that stretches back thousands of years. After a century and a half of foreign invasion, civil war, and revolution, China has once again returned to centre stage as a global superpower and the world’s second-largest economy. But how did it become so dominant? Wood argues that in order to comprehend the great significance of China today, we must begin with its history.

The Story of China takes a fresh look at the Middle Kingdom in light of the recent massive changes inside the country. Taking into account exciting new archaeological discoveries, the book begins with China’s prehistory—the early dynasties, the origins of the Chinese state, and the roots of Chinese culture in the age of Confucius. Wood looks at particular periods and themes that are now being re-evaluated by historians, such as the renaissance of the Song with its brilliant scientific discoveries. He paints a vibrant picture of the Qing Empire in the 18th century, just before the European impact, a time when China’s rich and diverse culture was at its height. Then, Wood explores the encounter with the West, the Opium Wars, the clashes with the British, and the extraordinarily rich debates in the late 19th century that pushed China along the path to modernity.

Finally, he provides a clear up-to-date account of post-1949 China, including revelations about the 1989 crisis based on newly leaked inside documents, and fresh insights into the new order of President Xi Jinping. All woven together with landscape history and the author’s own travel journals, The Story of China is the indispensable book about the most intriguing and powerful country on the world stage today. This is a fascinating, informative and accessible book on an exponentially rising economy and country. Written in fluid, languid prose, Wood has crafted a sweeping exploration of the evolutionary path the country has taken from centuries past right through to the present day and punctuates the timeline of the book with important events that have been most cataclysmic or beneficial to its growth and prosperity. If you have an interest in China and understanding how it became what it is today then I simply cannot recommend this exhaustive volume enough.

An interesting and readable single-volume history of China.

Single-volume histories of complex, powerful nations are often tricky endeavours. They are either unwieldy in their detail and length (and weight, if you're reading a hardcover); or they are too brief, skimming over certain events that a reader might consider important.

Wood does a good job of composing his history, and selecting what he wants to focus on and use to create an overall picture of China's history and how it's relevant to its place in the world today. He draws on well-known figure, and a few lesser-known figures, to paint a fascinating, engaging, and interesting picture of one of the world's most important and dynamic countries.

Definitely recommended.

--Not a good standalone history of China--

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher, and here are my thoughts.

First of all, I can only recommend this book to someone who has viewed the series, as it reads like a companion book, and not a book to be read on its own merits. 

Meaning, the skipping around in one chapter from one time period to another or from one tidbit of information to another seems to assume the reader has already seen the series and is a Chinese history expert. On film, cutting back and forth between scenes might make sense. But if you're picking up this book because you're wanting to enjoy a clear, well-written history of China, you will be disappointed.

If you are already a scholar of China and/or have a great knowledge of Chinese culture and history, and have not watched the series, perhaps you can follow this book and read it with pleasure.

I do not consider myself to be a China expert, but have some knowledge of the region and culture, having lived in Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, and Japan for about two decades. So, I am not a complete beginner to Asian cultures. But apparently, not "expert" enough to enjoy this book.

It is obvious that the author is passionate and learned about the history of China. So, it is with disappointment that I give this book 2 stars, for poor editorial choices in allowing this talented scholar to put out a work this disjointed.

For a book titled "The Story of China", I was hoping for something that read in a logical fashion. Also, the review copy I received had no photographs or illustrations. I'm assuming that if someone purchased this book to read along with the filmed series, they would be disappointed.

This book is mind-blowing beyond words. Its attention to detail amazed me. I’ve got way too many passages highlighted. 

The author vividly brought China’s history to life - from how China got its name, to showing Confucius’s influence since the Bronze Age (or in China known as Age of Philosophers), the rise of the Qin Empire under King Zhang, the First Emperor, that changed China forever; from getting to know the lives of people through Liye strips, the real life terra-cotta army which included letters written by two brothers giving us a glimpse into their lives  behind the army, to the fascinating story of the building of the royal tomb of the First Emperor and so much more.

We’d even get a glimpse into Sima Qian’s life, the lives of poor farmers and their families during the Han era, learn how Greek culture spread into Central Asia and how the Silk Road came into being. Included were also recent findings like letters in silk envelopes with the address and delivery instructions still on the package! And I’m so fascinated by Chang’an!

I plan to visit China one day and this book would definitely help me appreciate my trip there even more. Maybe visit some of the places mentioned in the book such as the Epang Palace, Sima Qian’s tomb, and of course the Terracota Army!

Taut, accessible, well-researched and documented, this is a must-read for those who have an interest in getting to know more about China.

I can’t wait to get my hands on this book once it’s published! 

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is an expansive mighty documentation of China’s history going all the way back to 1900 BCE chronicling the rise and fall of various dynasties through the Cultural Revolution and into modern-day China.  It is a tome of information, with meticulous research, including liberal quotes from people who lived during those times and journaled about their lives, historians living through the ages, as well as the many Chinese poets that graced China’s vast geographic span building a culture rich in the arts, culture, and literature. I’m more familiar with China’s history around the nineteenth century, so this was an interesting look at where China came from centuries before then. This is a dense book, replete with sometimes minute details, so pace yourself and know that you’ll be with the book for quite a while. It took me awhile to follow the first couple of chapters or so as the author went back and forth a bit, but it evened out after that and felt more chronological as the book went on. All in all, a comprehensive account of China’s history along with great insights into the lives of the cumulative Chinese people and their relations to the outside world - great for anyone interested in a thorough account of the history of China. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is an incredible, epic read of Chinese history. Covering 4000 years of history is a daunting task, however the author does an excellent job of it. Breaking down the history into specific dynasties, Wood's makes you feel like you are there as history is being made. He manages to accomplish this not by reciting boring facts and dates, but by telling a story in each section. 
This is not a book that you can plow through in one sitting. It requires your attention, and the reading of one chapter at a time, then taking time to digest it. But....you will come away with a much greater appreciation of China and it's people. 
On a different note, as I read this, I was discussing the chapters with a Chinese student that we have hosted. She was very surprised, stating several times that she "did not know that"! 
I highly recommend this book!

I have read a few books on Chinese history and I was surprised by the unique perspective the author provided on the topic. Despite China having a complicated and expansive history, Michael Wood was able to weave together the pieces of history in a coherent way. This book felt much more engaging than previous historical  sagas I have encountered.

I realy enjoyed this book. It didn't only give us a histiry of China. It showed how the events in Chibese history impacted the people of China themselves. It also explored the conflict between our western world views and that of China's eastern world view. I didn't find this book to be dry as some history books can be. I found it to be well written and engaging. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to get a comprehensive look at China. 

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

Chinese history in not something that is studied with any depth here in the west.  As a casual study of history, I have frequently attempted to do this on my own with mixed results. Most of the books that I have read are structured a lot like the history text books from which we learn our own history ... basically a list of dates, events and people on a timeline to memorize. Rarely do we see any attempt to explain the impact of these events on the social consciousness of the society in which they happen. This book not only provides an accessible survey of Chinese history, it compares and contrasts the social difference as well as presenting a reasonable hypothesis for why East and West have such divergent approaches to governance. Key to this examination are the references to contemporary western (greek/roman) philosophers and historians. From this I believe that I have a better understanding of the importance of conformity within eastern cultures, and how such could fall under the influence of such "Machiavellian" thought found within "The Book of Lord Shang." (Loc 1088/12%).

As expected given the time periods covered, this is a huge book packed with a great deal of information; some more interesting to me and some less so. I found myself skimming over a lot of the literary references in part because I had a hard time understanding how they reinforced or supported some of the authors points on Chinese culture.  That still left a lot of material to slog through. The book is organized by dynasties (Xia, Shang, Zhou, Qin, Han, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, Qin) and interregnums (Warring States, Three Kingdoms, Five Dynasties, Taiping & Boxer Rebellions, etc.), highlighting the cultural contributions (and continuity) of each as well as the reasons for decline and inevitable fall (loss of the Mandate of Heaven). What I found most interesting was the intersection of the Confucian ideal of the sage-ruler and the evolution of rather autocratic rulers (almost as if they knew they didn't have what was needed and through increasing paranoia harshly suppressed any criticism). Criticism and/or failure of any kind seems detrimental to life (not just your own, but you entire family to the 9th degree). This all has something of a discordant feel to people raised within a modern western culture (aka me). For pivotal events ... such as Mao's revolution ... the author tries to show multiple viewpoints (from traditional history to how it played in the rural areas with the common man).

Of all I found this book to be significantly helpful in understanding the differences between the east and west world views and I highly recommend it.

I was given this free advance reader copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
#TheStoryofChina #NetGalley

Thank you for the ARC!
This is one of those books that gets your attention from the first page. The opening scene was so beautifully described, the tension between the emperor and the dowager is very evident.
The China of today and how it can trace its existence through so many events in its past is wonderfully captured. 
I enjoyed reading this book very much.

This is a dense read but full of insights and wonderful stories. The readers will be taken to the rich and colorful history of China. I like that the vivid description of events.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

The Story of China is  a lengthy history covering 4,000 years of Chinese history. The throughline through the work is how the past and the present are tied together, and elements of current China can be traced back to events from decades, centuries, and millennia past. It begins with a moving description of the last instance of sacred solstice rites by the Emperor before the world-shattering events of the 20th century and how those rituals tie back to the Bronze Age. In addition to addressing major events, a substantial amount of the text is devoted to excerpted text from philosophers, government workers, and other writers of each era, including women and accounts from ordinary people as available. The author's documentary background shows through the occasional detailed descriptions of the modern cities overlaid on historic places. While these additions occasionally bog down the text, the end result is a rich, nuanced, and enjoyable history. 

It's hard to pick favorite sections, but here are just a few: 
-the lush descriptions of cosmopolitan Song-era Kaifeng had me swooning in delight. If I ever time travel, I want to go here/then, and I really want to see the amazing scroll Festival on the River (Quingming shanghe tu).
-the travels of Xu Xiake from the Late Ming, the most famous traveller in China 
-the surprisingly nuanced portrayal of Mao (as the book sums up by quoting Chen Yun, "Had Mao died in 1956 he would be an immportal; in 1966 still a great man but flawed. But he died in 1976. Alas, what can one say?")

The Story of China will invite comparison most readily to the PBS documentary series of the same name and to Superpower Interrupted by Michael A. Schuman , another sweeping history of China published in 2020. I can't comment on the documentary series since I haven't watched it, but I read Superpower Interrupted a few months ago. The two books have substantial similarities— both are 2020 comprehensive histories of China for a western audience. If a reader has the bandwidth, I think it's well worth reading both. They bring a different take, and I found pleasure in reading them so close together since elements of The Story of China nicely emphasized points made in Superpower Interrupted. The Story of China is definitely more meandering, especially with the many paragraphs of excerpted writings and modern descriptions, so even though the books have similar page counts, it felt a lot longer. I'd recommend Superpower Interrupted for those looking for a history much more targeted on drawing influences from historical China to the present.

Excellent, comprehensive resource on China in a very concise form.

I was thrilled to receive the ARC of this book; as a China Studies graduate, I'm obsessed with learning about this complex country. The one downside of studying this astonishing nation is that I'm often ashamed to find myself confused by it's long history and the various dynasties, emperors and names. That's why I really needed a book like Michael Wood's "The Story of China" which is long enough to be comprehensive, but short enough to actually keep my interest.

To be fair, I was wary of reading such a specific book by a historian whose "special interest was Anglo-Saxon history" (from his bio)- in other words, Wood is not an expert on China. However, I didn't find any errors in his book, and although I'm not an expert either, I believe it can be fully trusted. I'm glad I reached for it because unlike a history book, Wood's work reads in a more engaging way which actually felt like something I would read for pleasure.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"In the freezing December of 1899, two days before the winter solstice, the Guangxu emperor left the Forbidden City through Tiananmen Gate at the head of a huge and colourful procession."

The Story of China is a highly engaging history of the many dynasties that were finally swept away by revolution. This comprehensive account starts with an examination of how geography, especially flooding, shaped local beliefs and gave rise to the Shang dynasty. The book ends with the emergence of Xi Jinping, the latest emperor in “the new dynasty founded by Mao.”

Michael Wood is a notable historian and broadcaster, also known for his films on China under the same title. Although Wood modestly admits that he is not a Sinologist, it is his passion for archaeology and presenting the voices of the people with a broadcaster’s finesse which sets this book apart from other Chinese history books. China has an uneasy record when it comes to the preservation and presentation of history, and much has been written on what was lost during the Cultural Revolution. Thus, it is a joy to read his numerous inclusions and descriptions of very recent and emerging archaeological and astronomical finds that are shedding new light on China’s ancient past and the historical facts behind myths and folklore.

Amazingly, some of these new finds include written records, such as highly relatable letters from homesick soldiers in the Qin Army and Han garrisons on Silk Road watchtowers. With his film maker’s manner, Wood regularly presents his “view from the village” derived from written records and letters from imperial officials, Buddhist monks, women sold into slavery, children, feminist authors, declining grand families and farmers to enrich our picture of how it really was to experience these massive historic events. In more recent years, personal interviews, oral traditions and family documents replace archaeology, but when possible, he interviews members of the families we were introduced to hundreds of years before. In this way, the book creates a vivid sense of immediacy and takes the reader along for the transformation of China, through all its achievements and losses. These families endured through “…population growth , overtaxation, natural disasters and that indefinable loss of group feeling that can undermine even the most powerful states…”

For readers interested in visiting China, Wood as a travel show host does not disappoint. Each chapter, generally divided by dynasty, begins with an explanation of how the area looks now if you were to visit. If you were to arrive by high speed train, walk through its alleyways and past the factories, what’s the story of that pagoda there? He then introduces what remains of this ancient history, and explains if that monument or building has been rebuilt or restored in the modern era. Then, he takes you back to that time, with careful explanations of daily life, religion, ritual, family and relationships, power struggles, war and climate. These vignettes are brought to life through quotes from those who lived it. These memorable portraits allow readers to wrap their heads around the many dynasties and the creation of this “centralised, authoritarian bureaucracy ruled by a sage-emperor and his ministers and scholars…”

I especially enjoyed the feature on the Song dynasty poet Li Qingzhao (李清照). In the happy days of her marriage, she and her husband collected antiques, books, art and enjoyed the food stalls throughout the lanes near the university. “We lived happy together those years. By the fire we made tea…and were untroubled by sudden storms…so long as we could share a cup of wine, and a sheet of fine paper.” Concubines, war, and widowhood would turn her to a career in Hangzhou publishing poetry and essays.

This is an exceptionally well balanced book. If you are interested in travel, religion, war, literature, class or gender studies, there is ample coverage of these topics through each time period. Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang are only lightly covered, as is Empress Dowager Cixi. “Sparked by drought and famine, poverty and class war, peasant risings were flaring up across China. Then, in 1894– 5, China suffered a humiliating defeat in a disastrous war with Japan. Now the colonial powers gathered like vultures: the Russians, Japanese and Germans in the north; the French and British in the south.” He uses broad strokes to describe events from the 1940s onward. I believe this is more due to scope of the text, rather than any intentional avoidance on the author’s part. However, his historical daring in tackling ancient China with a travel writer’s flair is perfection. Overall, the introduction to China’s ancient dynasties makes this book worth purchasing alone.

It is due to this balance and the above mentioned inclusion of different voices through history that you won’t be able to put this book down. It is a massive and slightly intimidating history, but nicely divided into easily consumed wedges. Wood kindly refers repeatedly to where we are at in the Western timeline (Such as who was the Roman emperor during that time period) or draws parallels to similar events in Western history, which helps the unfamiliar reader mentally locate these events in world history. For example, in describing the cultural losses of the Taiping Rebellion he says that it was “as if, let us say, the scholarly heartland of Western Europe in the 1860s had been smashed from Amsterdam to Paris, its scholars killed or dispersed and its libraries destroyed.”

Throughout the text he examines the psyche of Chinese culture and how this idea of a unified state and a feeling of togetherness has persisted through peasant uprising, warlords, Japanese invasions, civil wars, revolution, famine and trauma. He examines both the cities and countryside equally, as “China in the 1920s and ’30s was a land of extraordinary extremes and hugely uneven development. In places in the deep countryside , peasants laboured barefoot with medieval implements, faced with famine and flood, selling their children into slavery while warlords and their militias extorted and murdered at will.”

This is well handled in his overview of Tiananmen Square 1989. Wood does not make excuses nor claim to be a mind reader into what led to those decisions, but rather examines recently released 2019 documentary sources, such as memoirs, Politburo papers and diaries. He closes with a brief presentation about the continuing questions related to their credibility and significance.

The thematic backbone of this history is that China has suffered great upheavals, caused by their fellow humans and by natural disasters. The “astonishing patience and stoicism of the Chinese people” in the face of these seemingly endless catastrophic events allows the reader to understand this country’s yearning for stability, economic growth and recognition for the remarkable accomplishments of Chinese civilisation.

China is a tough subject to tackle in a succinct and interesting way, but the author did a pretty impressive job of doing both. I'm not a history buff, but this seems well researched (although every history book seems to have academic detractors). Nonetheless, this is written in a friendly, engaging style (not academic) that I welcomed. The history of China is so long and complicated. This provides a solid overview in one volume. Nicely done.

I really appreciate the ARC for review!!