The Search for Modern China

by Jonathan Spence · 1990

The Search for Modern China is the classic introductory survey of Chinese history from the early 17th century to the present. Originating from Jonathan D. Spence’s legendary Yale course, the text has become the best‑selling textbook for students and teachers of modern Chinese history. Updated by Princeton scholar Janet Chen, the new edition streamlines the narrative while incorporating recent scholarship, maintaining a spellbinding, readable account of social, political, and cultural developments that shaped modern China.