Books about China

The Long March 1934-35, The rise of Mao and the beginnings of modern China, Benjamin Lai. Looks at one of the most significant events in modern Chinese History, viewing it as a massive military campaign in which the Communists suffered appalling losses – over 90% - before reaching the relative safety of Shaanzi in north-eastern China, where they were able to rebuild. Also looks at the rise of Mao, who began the March as one of many potential leaders and ended it as the clear leader of the Chinese Communist Party (Read Full Review)

Armies of the First Sino-Japanese War 1894-95, Gabriele Esposito. Combines a useful account of the build-up to war and the course of the war itself, before moving on to look at the modernised Japanese army and the very varied Chinese forces that opposed them. Provides a good overview of the war that saw Imperial Japan emerge forcefully onto the world stage, and marked a stage in the decline of Qing China. (Read Full Review)

China Station – The British Military in the Middle Kingdom 1839-1997, Mark Felton. Looks at one of the less glorious chapters of British military history, starting with the two Opium Wars and including the invasion of Tibet, and the Japanese conquest of Hong Kong. Also covers the Boxer War, the famous attack on HMS Amethyst, a disasterous attempt to create a branch of SOE in Shanghai, and the final forty years of British rule in Hong Kong. Interesting to see how the balance of power changed during the century and a half of British involvement, from the one-sided victories of the First Opium War to the hard fighting during the Boxer Revolt and the acknowledgement that Hong Kong was undefendable by 1941 (Read Full Review)

Images of War - China & Japan at War 1937-1945, Philip Jowett. A look at the long brutal war between China and Japan, with a good range of pictures from both sides, covering the entire course of the war from the initial incidents in the north of China, through the brutal battles that destroyed the better part of the Nationalist army and through the long brutal years of Japanese occupation on to the eventual Allied victory. A well chosen selection of pictures, supported by good captions and a useful introduction to the course of the war. (Read Full Review)

The Junks and Sampans of the Yangtze, G.R.G. Worcester. A truly compelling book looking at far more than it’s title might suggest – as well as detailed examinations of the many different types of junks and sampans found on the Yangtze, we also get an enthralling account of life on that river as it was until fairly recently, written by a British member of the Chinese Maritime Customs Service, who was given eight years to research his topic! Has a timeless feel, despite being researched during a time of near constant civil war, followed by Japanese invasion, with the author spending time in a Japanese prison camp, and having to leave China after the Communist takeover. This is one of those books that I’m sad to have finished!(Read Full Review)

A Military History of China, David Richard Petriello. An ambitious attempt to cover several thousand years of Chinese history in a single volume, from the earlier legends to the conflicts of Communist China. A generally successful book, despite getting a little too bogged down in the fine details of many of the ancient and medieval campaigns, with a useful examination of the motivation behind China’s external wars. Supported by over 100 maps, which make it easier to trace the course of events and identify the very many kingdoms that appeared in the area now covered by modern China (Read Full Review)

Nanjing 1937 - Battle for a Doomed City, Peter Harmsen. A compelling but rather depressing look at the campaign that ended with the sack of Nanjing, one of the most serious Japanese war crimes of the Sino-Japanese War. Looks at the way in which the Japanese army in China slipped out of the control of the leaders at home, the advance to Nanjing, the siege of the city and the six-week long sack that followed (Read Full Review)

Imperial Chinese Armies, 1840-1911, Philip S. Jowett. Looks at a period of somewhat chaotic and ultimately unsuccessful reform in the Chinese armies, which still saw a dramatic transformation from armies that would have been familiar to the original Manchu emperors to a recognisably modern, if somewhat chaotic army. As a result the book covers an unusually wide range of troop types, from bowmen to machine gunners! You'll probably struggle to find an Osprey that covers as much change and variety in such a short period [read full review]

Defending Heaven - China's Mongol Wars 1209-1370, James Waterson. Focuses on the Song Dynasty's long battles with northern nomads, their final destruction by the Mongols after a fierce struggle, the short-lived Mongol Yuan dynasty and its overthrow by the rebels who eventually formed the Ming Dynasty. This is a splendid account of a complex but critical period of Chinese history. [read full review]

Shanghai 1937 - Stalingrad on the Yangtze, Peter Harmsen. Looks at one of the first major urban battles of the Twentieth Century, a Chinese attempt to expel the Japanese from Shanghai and distract them from the fighting in northern China that expanding into a major battle and led to some of the first major atrocities of the conflict between Japan and China. [read full review]

China's Wars - Rousing the Dragon 1894-1949, Philip Jowett. Covers the period from the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-95 to the Communist victory in the Civil War of 1946-49, a period dominated first by the warlords who ripped China apart and then by the Japanese who attempted to take advantage of the chaos to establish their own brutal Empire in China. [read full review]

The Art of War, Sun Tzu. A beautifully presented edition of one of the classics of military thought. Printed on high quality paper (it shows), and bound using a traditional Chinese method which involves sewing the pages together using holes punched close to the inner edge. Has the Chinese text on one page with the English translation facing it. [read full review]

An Airline at War, Robert L. Willet. A history of the China National Aviation Corporation, a joint venture between Pan Am and the Chinese Government. The airline struggled against Japanese aggression, poor facilities, the Communists and the terrain, but managed to survive for 20 years, playing a massive part in the development of the 'Hump' - the air route across the Himalayas that was the only way to get supplies into China for much of the Second World War. [read full review]

Chinese Walled Cities, 221 BC-AD 1644, Stephen Turnbull. A fascinating look at this little-known topic, covering a very long time span, with detailed case studies of key fortified cities and accounts of a number of sieges. Includes some excellent pictures of a number of very impressive surviving city walls. [see more]

Pirate of the Far East: 941-1644, Stephen Turnbull, Osprey Warrior 125. This book covers a long period of time and a fascinating and often neglected subject. It shatters some of the myths about the pirates of this area and period and highlights the interaction and impact of the Wako on Japanese historical events.  It described several of the sea lords of the Japanese and works well as a companion book with other Ospreys covering the ships of the period and the Japanese invasion of Korea. [see more]

Siege Weapons of the Far East: AD 612-1300 v. 1, Stephen Turnbull, Osprey, 2001, 48 pages. This is a lovely illustrated book which covers a mostly neglected area of Far Eastern warfare. Its colour plates and diagrams are dramatic and impressive [see more]

Siege Weapons of the Far East: AD 960-1644 v. 2 , Stephen Turnbull, Osprey, 2002, 48 pages. The companion piece to volume 1, this work concentrated on gunpowder weapons and defensive items. [see more]