CHINA: People, Place, Culture, History

“For so many years I wanted to describe to my Western friends where I came from but was unable to. With this book, I can. I thought I knew China, but the perspective offered here amazed me.”
— Anchee Min, in the foreword to China

To tell the story of the world’s oldest continuous civilization, with its dramatic and contrasting elements and fast-growing modern economy, is a difficult task begging special attention.

China: People, Place, Culture, History will take you through time and across borders by way of informative text, historical voices, rousing poetry and more than 700 specially commissioned images by world-class photographers. China: People, Place, Culture, History threads its way through the country’s storied 4,000 year culture and compels the reader to rethink his concept of China and its people.

As the world’s most populous country, the host of the 2008 Olympics, and home to an evolving social, economic and political atmosphere, China will continue to be a prominent and compelling story. This detailed exploration of the country’s long, rich history and complex present makes China: People, Place, Culture, History an exceptional reference on one of the world’s great nations.

Click here to view an interactive map of photography from the book.

Click here for a behind the scenes peek of the making of China: People, Place, Culture, History

About the Contributors

Anchee Min, foreword writer
Born in Shanghai in 1957, Anchee Min was sent to a labor collective, where, at seventeen, a talent scout for Madame Mao’s Shanghai Film Studio recruited her to work as an actress. Min arrived in the U.S. in 1984 and published her bestselling memoir, Red Azalea. Her novels Katherine and Wild Ginger were also published to critical acclaim, and Becoming Madame Mao and Empress Orchid became national bestsellers. Anchee Min currently lives in San Francisco.

Alison Bailey is Director of the Centre of Chinese Research, Institute of Asian Research, University of British Columbia. She lived and worked in Beijing for three years and returns frequently.

Ronald G. Knapp is SUNY Distinguished Professor Emeritus at The State University of New York, and lectures on the geography and architecture of China. He is author and editor of more than a dozen books on Chinese vernacular architecture.

Peter Neville-Hadley is a travel writer and author of many publications on Chinese culture, history, and politics. He studied Mandarin in London and Beijing and runs The Oriental-List website for travelers in China.

J.A.G. Roberts is a historian who teaches at the University of Huddersfield and has written many books on China’s history.

Nancy S. Steinhardt is professor in the department of Asian and Middle Eastern studies at the University of Pennsylvania, and curator of Chinese art at the University’s Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.

Christopher Pillitz is a world-renowned photographer born in Buenos Aires and based in London. He has exhibited in the UK, Italy and Spain and has photographed for books and publications including The Sunday Times, Time, Life, Newsweek and Le Figaro.