Superpower Interrupted

The Chinese History of the World

By: Michael Schuman

Narrated by: Shawn Compton

This global history as the Chinese would write it gives brilliant and unconventional insights for understanding China's role in the world, especially the drive to "Make China Great Again."

We in the West routinely ask: "What does China want?" The answer is quite simple: the superpower status it always had, but briefly lost.
In this colorful, informative story filled with fascinating characters, epic battles, influential thinkers, and decisive moments, we come to understand how the Chinese view their own history and how its narrative is distinctly different from that of Western civilization. More important, we come to see how this unique Chinese history of the world shapes China's economic policy, attitude toward the United States and the rest of the world, relations with its neighbors, positions on democracy and human rights, and notions of good government.
As the Chinese see it, for as far back as anyone can remember, China had the richest economy, the strongest military, and the most advanced philosophy, culture, and technology. The collision with the West knocked China's historical narrative off course for the first time, as its 5,000-year reign as an unrivaled superpower came to an ignominious end.
Ever since, the Chinese have licked their wounds and fixated on returning their country to its former greatness, restoring the Chinese version of its place in the world as they had always known it. For the Chinese, the question was never if they could reclaim their former dominant position in the world, but when.

Critic reviews

"This brisk chronicle delivers meaningful context for readers looking to go beyond the daily headlines about China."—Publishers Weekly

"For those new to the subject, or those who want a brush-up (which was the Yongle Emperor?), Schuman's is in the running for an "if you only read one book on Chinese history..." accolade."—Asian Review of Books

"Of considerable interest to students of world trade, geopolitics, and history."
—Kirkus Reviews

"Schuman takes the reader on an illuminating, 3,000-year journey deep into the country's history, as the Chinese see it, and offers a thoughtful understanding of the historical roots of its national objectives."—Irish Times

"Michael Schuman takes the reader on an invaluable journey deep into the hinterland of the Chinese psyche, tying Xi Jinping's modern ambitions to the country's centuries-old narratives. From the rise and fall of dynasties to painful interactions with neighboring barbarians and unsavory westerners, Schuman's scholarship vividly describes China's exceptionalism and how it underlines the ruling communist party's objectives to this day."—Richard McGregor, author of The Party: The Secret World of China's Communist Rulers and Xi Jinping: The Backlash

"Schuman skillfully narrates more than three thousand years of history through a Chinese lens that places China at the center of the world and Chinese civilization above all others. Superpower Interrupted provides crucial insights into Xi Jinping's Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation that seeks to restore China to its rightful place as world leader. Superpower Interrupted is essential reading for all those who want a deeper understanding of the historical roots of China's national objectives."—Bonnie Glaser, Center for Strategic and International Studies

"Superpower Interrupted is a concise and elegant survey of China as a dominant power in Eurasia. Michael Schuman provides an illuminating perspective on the Middle Kingdom's rise, fall, and reemergence as a geopolitical superpower and the evolution of its ties with the rest of the world. Those wondering how a rejuvenated China will conduct itself in world affairs will do well to read Superpower Interrupted for its deep insights and rich historical knowledge."—Minxin Pei, Claremont McKenna College, author of China's Crony Capitalism

"Timely, eloquent and lively throughout, Michael Schuman has written a book that covers China's long past--and hints at its future."—Peter Frankopan, Oxford University, author of The Silk Roads

Those ignorant to history are doomed to repeat it

This was a fascinating book. The changes in dynasties mixed with foreign making is hard to keep up with, the ching to the ming, the wu, etc... but if you pay attention to the overall flow of Chinese history it's incredible how prevalent the confuscionist outlook still is in the PRC.

This book is worth a listen if you have any interest at all in understanding why China acts like China

Very informative for a beginner.

I enjoyed the writing and the narration. It is my first book on China and it had plenty of information and historical perspective to inspire further study. I can see how a Chinese might be disappointed with the mispronunciation but that is irrelevant to me. The narrative is easy to follow, if you are looking for an introduction to the China Thing this book worked for me.

“All Under Heaven”…

“All Under Heaven” is an Admirable, Aspirational, and Terrifying Goal for the CCP. Mr. Schuman lays out a basis for the various strategies being employed by the Chinese government - economic strangulation by One Belt, One Road, sharp power subversion of “Confucius Institutions”, military posturing and land grabbing in the South China Sea - all harken to hyperbole of dynastic greatness in China’s imperial past. The scary part is, as Schuman intimates in the closing chapter, is the attempt to unify “all under heaven” is not just a physical, geographic, or territorial aim of the CCP, but to lord over a vast kingdom economically and culturally. This may be the most comprehensive answer to the recent “great question” of the West: “What does China want?”

Butchered chinese pronunciations

Disappointing that for a book about the history of China, not one person in the production of this audiobook would have thought, ‘hey maybe we should find a reader who can pronounce the place and emperor names properly?’ Pretty shameful

The narrator is good, but names in Chinese..

The narrator is very good, but his pronunciation of names in Chinese... needs to work on it for a next book about China