An Interesting 20th Century Chinese History Lesson

     While traveling in China, we were constantly reminded what a vast amount of history that ancient country has. And for Americans, who feel like 1776 was a LONG time ago, talk of this dynasty and that emperor quickly became overwhelming.

     Once we returned home, we decided to try and learn as much as we could about the history of the country where our daughters were born. At least for the history of China in the 20th Century, many of the names were familiar, and we found a great set of DVD's that helped us put faces and events together with those names.

     CHINA - A Century of Revolution was originally a series on PBS that charted Chinese history from the fall of the last emperor in 1911 through the student protests at Tiananmen Square as the 20th Centruy was coming to a close. Now available as a set of 3 DVD's, CHINA - A Century of Revolution uses archival film footage and  contemporary interviews with folks who actually witnessed the events being described to create an amazingly detailed visual history of China during this tumultuous period.

     Yes, we still have many centuries of Chinese history to learn, but at least we have begun to understand the last 100 years. And if you are interested in seeing what China was like during this period,  CHINA - A Century of Revolution is a great place to start.