Covering all of East Asian history from the Neolithic to the present--including Mongolia and Vietnam, alongside China, Japan, and Korea--Patterns of East Asian History uses recognizable and widely-accepted patterns of historical development as a framework around which to structure the material. This approach serves as both an organizational aid to instructors and as a tool to make complex material more comprehensible to students. The result is enhanced pedagogical flexibility. This subtly recursive format allows abundant opportunities for contrast and comparison among and within the societies under consideration. The overall aim is to simplify the immense complexities of history for beginning students without making them simplistic. Featuring nearly sixty maps and 200 photos, Patterns of East Asian History provides a rich visual history that complements its engaging narrative.

"Patterns of East Asian History offers significant features that other texts do not. Desnoyers does an excellent job of identifying and explaining patterns in East Asian civilizations; he includes the latest scholarship and places East Asia in the context of world history." - Peter Worthing, Texas Christian University

"This book is well organized, includes the most important events and personalities, and sustains students with animated writing and engrossing details. Patterns of East Asian History is accurate, concise, and engaging." - Margaret B. Denning, Slippery Rock University

"Patterns of East Asian History is an engaging and accessible survey of East Asian history that attends to both local/national histories and transnational/global patterns." - Charles V. Reed, Elizabeth City State University

"This text is well organized and the chapter-opening vignettes capture students' interest. The scholarship is solid and the coverage is excellent." - Clayton D. Brown, Utah State University