Scan barcode
aehsan's review against another edition
5.0
A fascinating look at why China 'fell behind' even though it was a leading pioneer of Gunpowder use in warfare. The book is well written and highly engaging with a clear sense of purpose and narrative which pulls you in while helping you learn. I don't know much about Gunpowder warfare and found myself easily able to follow the evidence and arguments put forward as the book does a great job of explaining it all. All in all a great read that helps also set the context for how China may view its current state of Military tech and important lessons for Innovation management going forward as a whole.
jameseckman's review
4.0
Why is it that academic military histories are much more readable than their non-military counterparts? Maybe they expect a broader audience? This was a great read on the evolution of gunpowder warfare, much of which covers China's contributions to the art, which hasn't been tackled by the English speaking military writing community until recently. Many of the earlier weapons are bizarre, early powder mixes were more of a fire tool and not really explosive. The later developments are covered as well as why China seemed to have completely lost its edge starting with the Opium wars. makes extensive use of Asian reference works, unlike earlier works from the 90's and prior. Covers much of the politics and society of the military in gunpowder (900-1900) China at the critical points.
For the academically inclined, this book is about 1/4 footnotes and bibliography neatly tucked away in the back where it doesn't interfere with the narration.
For the academically inclined, this book is about 1/4 footnotes and bibliography neatly tucked away in the back where it doesn't interfere with the narration.
More...