Kenneth C. Danforth

These National Geographic publications from the 1970s and 1980s may seem on the outside somewhat frothy and superficial, but actually they pack in a lot of information, combined with an on-the-spot reporting that enhances its value to us, since we cannot hope to visit all these far-flung places and countries. Of course, they are also anything but lightweight physically, being large format and well bound!

This is one of those big National Geo books that look so wonderful on a coffee table. It was passed along to me in a big stack over a year ago and I am just now getting to it. I normally like to look at the pictures but don't really enjoy the writing so much. Not so with this one!

Book was written in the 1980's after China opened up to more travelers. National Geo sent different writers on different journey's to cover as much of the country as possible. They give a map at the beginning of show more each chapter to show exactly where they traveled. Examples are The Silk Road, The Yangtze, a certain railroad, etc. I finished this book in 3 days as the writing styles captivated me. And the book is half pictures also! Maybe it captured me so much because we plan on taking our daughter back to China when she is 10 and it gave me so many idea's of places I would love to see with her. Neat book. If they have it at your library take a look at it -- not even for the pictures, but for the stories. show less

After a year of negotiations, NGS gained unprecedented access to China in 1982 for 20 writers and photographers, accompanied by hundreds of Party officials....
This book does capture the intensity of a people newly-awakened to their potential. The work begins with an illustrated history of 4000 years of culture, then jumps into travelogue sight-seeing. It has to confirm the affections of the Chinese people for beauty and wonder and genuine accomplishment. It does pass over, as in overlooks, show more the scale and toxicity of the government's plunge into Industrialism. {China has 18 of the world's 20 most polluted Cities.} The volume documents the importance of Chinese contributions to civilization. show less

A beautiful introduction to mainland China as only National Geographic could produce such stunning quality.