China Since 1945

School Library Journal

Gr 7-12-- These two British imports summarize briefly two great 20th-century revolutions. The complicated web of events is made manageable by fragmenting the accounts into two-page sections and by liberal use of historic photographs, reproductions of propaganda posters, and boxed quotations. The format and design of the books is excellent, with a good choice of illustrations, some use of color, and with bold labels identifying the content of each section. The visual material nicely balances the text in content and placement. The scope of the book on China ranges from the Chinese Empire in 1900 to the present-day government headed by Deng Xiaoping. The Russian Revolution covers the period 1914-1924, dividing the events of those years into several headings dealing with the Romanovs, the Provisional Government, the Bolshevik Revolution, and Civil War. The last brief sections on ``War Communism,'' ``The New Economic Policy'' and ``The New Order'' describe the regime established by Lenin before his death. The books provide compact and well-arranged information, and will serve admirably as resource materials for school reports. --Shirley Wilton, Ocean County College, Toms River, NJ