Covering an extensive period—from the end of Han in the late second century to the beginning of Song in the late tenth—this updated edition features historical figures, places, events, movements, agencies and offices, works of art and literature, and more. The volume contains maps of China during the various dynastic periods, a lengthy introduction, a chronology, and other supporting materials. Historian Xiong author of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty: His Life, Times, and Legacy, has added more than 1,500 new entries with extensive cross-references to the approximately 5,000 entries of the 2009 first edition (reissued in paperback as The A to Z of Medieval China in 2010). The author has also expanded the chronology and updated the bibliography with recent scholarship. Entries are typically a few lines to a half page long, and each provides the Chinese characters for the term, approximate dates when relevant, geographical area, a brief definition or explanation, and reference to Chinese sources when applicable. Thematic entries, many new in this second edition, are longer—from a half page (e.g., ‘nobility’) to three pages (e.g., ‘literature’). The work is a commendable undertaking and a valuable reference tool for Chinese studies.Summing Up: Recommended. Advanced students through researchers/faculty.