The crucial book for understanding modern China, now updated to include the rule of Xi Jinping In 1850, China was the 'sick man of Asia'. Now it is set to become the most powerful nation on earth. The Penguin History of Modern China shows how turbulent that journey has been. For 150 years China has endured as a victim of brutality on an unmatched scale, of oppression, war and famine. This makes its current position as the newest and, arguably, most important global superpower all the more extraordinary. Jonathan Fenby's clear, authoritative and brilliantly written account of China's recent past, now updated to take in the ascendency of Xi Jinping and China's global ambitions, is the definitive guide to this remarkable transformation.