Designed for the East Asian history course, this text features the latest scholarship on the region and offers a range of cultural, political, economic, and intellectual history. Coverage is balanced among East Asian regions, with approximately 20 percent of the text focused on Korea, an area that has become increasingly important in East Asian courses and in world politics. Special attention is devoted to coverage of gender and material culture-topics that are reinforced through the text's pedagogical features. Color inserts illustrate the rich artistic heritage of East Asia and bolster the coverage of material culture. Connections sections appear throughout the text and provide an international context for the history of East Asia. Some of the topics covered include Buddhism, the Mongols, Imperialism, and World War II. Each chapter includes primary source features that document, among other topics, culture or the arts. Biographical sketches highlight the lives of major figures in East Asian history.