China - The Land Book

We love Kalman's style that doesn't talk down to children, but presents factual information in a way they can understand.

However, we are somewhat China obsessed in our house and we found this book to be problematic. A brief summary:
* China is the third largest country in the world" pg 5, yet there is considerable dispute over whether USA or China is larger. Roughly half the sources I checked say USA and half say China. I would have preferred a summary of why this is so than a misleading assertion.
* The referencing of Mt. Everest in confusing. Is it 'in' or 'out' of China and if that is unclear, why?
* The talk of geography and use of terminology unique to China kicks off from the beginning, yet the map we want to use to reference and orientate doesn't appear until page 9. The map on Page 9 features China's five autonomous units which are not discussed until page 10 (which is a flip, not a facing page). These chronological disconnects between text and graphics were noticeable and distracting. Special Economic Zones are referenced page 15 and defined page 16, which highlights the general confusion I felt as to why certain words were included in the glossary and others in the text.
* In general, I found the graphics to be poor. Photos of key places were not included. Maps were sparse. The graphics felt like fillers selected by someone as opposed to real complements/ enhancements to the text.
* The role of warlords (who are referenced) was unclear in relation to both China's revolutions and the colonial powers.
* The tremendous loss of life through warlord conflict, colonial aggression, civil wars and revolutions is completely glossed over. I understand it is a children's book, but I think some reference should be made to not only the incredible number of people who live in China today, but also the incredible number of people lost through it's political turbulence because this is a major influence in Chinese culture.
* Inaccurate or overly simplistic information about coal as an energy source in general and coal usage in China in specific.
* The Fishing section is horribly dated. It gives the impression that most fishing is wild caught and then casually mentions that 3/4 of fishing in China is farm raised. The focus on cormorant fishing, while an interesting cultural distinctive, was completely out of proportion to its practice in China in the present day.
* The train travel section was also outdated. No reference is made to bullet trains and the detailed text on seating options was a snap shot of a China long gone. Whether this was due to inaccuracy at the time of publication or the speed of change in China since 2008, I don't have time to determine.
* Car transportation and motor transportation are discussed, but not in the proper context of environmental and political concerns that are shaping the auto experience in China.
* The Great Wall of China cannot be seen from outer space!
* Humanitarian concerns about China's government are not presented, and the Tienanmen Square uprising is not referenced in revolutions. One gets the impression that the government is merely an inconvenience that needs to be fine tuned, not a serious threat to its citizens. While that is true for many, maybe most Chinese, this is again a huge cultural force that affects all areas of Chinese life.

On the positive side,
* Communism was explained. Several sections wrestle with the challenges of government regulation of life.
* Alternation between accounting China's successes and failures in a fairly balanced manner.
* Ancient history is included, though we would have liked to see a timeline.
* Aside from the chronological dissonance between text and graphics which seems more prevalent in the opening sections, we liked the subject matter topics particularly "Faces of China" (minorities and cultures), "Ancient History", "China's Revolutions", and "Wonders of China".

Overall, I'm disappointed and wondering whether to keep this book or not. I would not recommend it. There is also the rather unfortunate event that I am now questioning other Kalman titles, wondering if I simply don't know enough about other places to detect errors or misfires as with this title.

I find the DK Eyewitness Ancient China and CHINA books, though longer and possibly a higher reading level, to be better resources over all.