China

Informed by a geographer's perspective, this text portrays a vast country where distance still acts as a major constraint on social interaction, where the population is so huge that demand for resources almost always outstrips supply, and where regional variations have produced a rich mosaic of human and physical characteristics. The author portrays the relatively unexplored world of everyday life in China by examining the exodus from countryside to city, the status of women after decades of Confucian oppression, and the future for ethnic minorities. This text should be useful as an introduction to China in all relevant disciplines.