China

Book excerpt: A spectacular photographic tour of China's natural scenery and architectural landmarks, now available in a charming miniature edition. This attractive little volume takes us on a visual journey through the greatest splendors of China’s varied geography and the chief monuments of its 5,000-year-old civilization. Its 243 color photographs, which include 12 panoramic gatefolds, show us the country’s most famous landmarks—like the Forbidden City and the Great Wall—as we have never seen them before, and and introduce us to less familiar but just as fascinating sights, like the the multicolored travertine lakes of Huanglong Valley and the beautiful calligraphic inscriptions on the rugged rocks of Mount Taishan. Extended captions at the back of the book provide a concise introduction to the history and significance of each of the forty-four locales depicted, twenty-eight of which have been designated as World Heritage sites by UNESCO.