"Charles Hucker has written a balanced, precise, and concise overview of China's evolution until about 1850."—Asian Forum "A concise overview of Imperial China—a good place to begin . . . recommended."—Focus on Asian Studies "A simplified history of the Chinese and their culture from prehistory to about 1850. The book, which draws heavily from Hucker's China's Imperial Past: An Introduction to Chinese History and Thought, presents a straightforward chronological treatment. . . . This is an excellent introductory text for high school students beginning to study Chinese history."—Kliatt "Charles O. Hucker's China to 1850, a contracted and condensed version of his highly extolled China's Imperial Past, is a solid, precise, scholarly work. It would probably best suit the general reader who wants a glance at China's past. To an undergraduate class, it also offers an inexpensive alternate. . . . This small book is well proportioned and balanced in its coverage of political and social institutions, literature, art, thought, and religion, as well as material culture and technology."—The Michigan Academician