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“The book provides a full treatment of a very important topic. Excellent maps and other illustrations accompany the clearly written text. Supplemental features including topic boxes, key terms, and learning objectives, along with further reading suggestions, will be very useful for students. Well worth consideration for adoption as a key textbook for courses related to this Asian titan.”

—Susan M. Walcott, PhD, Department of Geography, University of North Carolina at Greensboro


“This highly readable, comprehensive text includes topics that are not touched on very often in other books, such as rural China and e-commerce in China. It will serve as an excellent textbook for an introductory Geography of China course and a good up-to-date reference for people who want to understand contemporary China from a geographical perspective.”

—Enru Wang, PhD, Department of Geography and Geographic Information Science, University of North Dakota


“Offering a comprehensive approach, the book covers all geographical aspects of China and is supported with valuable graphs and images. The authors are clearly well versed in the topics they present; their informative points of view will help students better understand China’s historical and current position in the world. The book includes explanations of China’s rapid growth as a driving force in the global economy and addresses ongoing and emerging challenges related to its continued growth.”

—Mila Zlatic, PhD, Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park


“This book is as readable as A Little History of the World, but with artfully embedded geographic theories. It offers a concise synthesis of Chinese physical and human geography. This is the textbook I have been waiting for—definitely a top choice for undergraduate courses on the Geography of China.”

—Bin Li, PhD, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Central Michigan University

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Table of Contents

I. Background

1. Exploring China: The Aspiring Dragon

2. Physical Environment and Resources: Diverse and Abundant

3. Population: Dynamic and Diverse

II. Thematic Topics

4. Agriculture, Food, and Culture

5. China’s Changing Economic Geography: State, Space, and Market

6. Chinese Cities: Growing in Size and Number

7. Beyond the Cities: The Chinese Countryside

8. Transportation Geography and E-Commerce Logistics in China

9. Environmental Crisis with Chinese Characteristics

III. Selected Regions

10. Coastal China

11. The Periphery of China

12. Beyond the Mainland: Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan

Conclusion

13. China at the Crossroads

Appendix: Websites

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About the Authors

David W. S. Wong, PhD, is Professor in the Department of Geography and Geoinformation Science at George Mason University. Formerly, he was Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Hong Kong. His primary thematic research interests are in population and health geographies. His primary technical interests include spatial analysis statistical methods and geovisualization. He has published extensively in measuring spatial segregation, with recent research focusing on uncertainty in spatial data. Dr. Wong has served on the editorial boards of journals including Computers, Environment, and Urban Systems; Demography; and Geographical Analysis.

Kenneth K. K. Wong, PhD, was Professor in the Department of Geography at Hong Kong Baptist University until retiring in 2015. He served as Visiting Research Scientist in the Department of Geography at National Taiwan University and as Visiting Professor in the Asian and Asian American Studies Program at Binghamton University, The State University of New York. His research focuses on people’s attitudes toward environmental problems, on environmental policy implementation, and (more recently) on the sustainable use of urban green spaces and green urbanism issues. Dr. Wong has published widely in journals including Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design; Sustainable Development; Area; Managing Leisure; the International Journal of Environmental Studies; and Public Administration Review.

Him Chung, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at Hong Kong Baptist University. His research interests span the rural, urban, and regional geography of China, with foci including rural transformation, urban redevelopment, rural-to-urban migration, and town and regional planning. He has published in journals including Environment and Planning A; International Journal of Urban and Regional Research; Eurasian Geography and Economics; Planning Practice and Research; and China Perspective. Dr. Chung is also involved in the promotion and curriculum development of high school geography in Hong Kong.

James J. Wang, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Hong Kong. His research focuses on transportation geography, with special interests in port development, port–city relations, and public transportation in China. He is a member of the Steering Committee of the Transport and Geography Commission of International Geographical Union, a council member of the Hong Kong Society for Transport Studies, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. Widely published, Dr. Wang serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Transport Geography; Transportmetrica A; Transportmetrica B; Travel Behaviour and Society; and Asian Geographer. He has participated in port–city planning projects and strategic studies for more than 30 Chinese and other Asian port cities and regions.

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Audience

Students and instructors in geography, Asian Studies, Global Studies, and related disciplines; scholars and professionals who want to understand contemporary China from a geographical perspective.

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Course Use

Serves as a text in advanced undergraduate- or graduate-level courses such as Geography of China, Geography of East Asia, Contemporary China, Globalization, and Cultural Studies.