THE UNITED STATES AND CHINA IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY

The spate of recent books on this subject would seem to make yet another treatment superfluous, but let's hope that this one doesn't get lost in the crowd. Schaller (Univ. of Arizona, Tucson) concentrates on the political relationship between the two countries, drawing in cultural and other factors only as they relate to political understandings or, more often, misunderstandings. In a very concise treatment, Schaller places U.S.-China relations within the larger context of U.S. Asian policies, which tied China into U.S.-Japanese rivalry--a situation that continues today. After a lucid presentation of internal Chinese politics, Schaller details the U.S. involvement in the Chinese Civil War (subject of his recent The U.S. Crusade in China, 1938-1945), including the aborted effort to supply Chiang Kal-shek with American pilots, and the growth of the ""China lobby"" in this country that influenced Washington's policies toward the People's Republic. While there is little in Schaller's work that is new, his focus is sharp and his rehearsal of U.S.-China policy in the Civil War and immediate post-Liberation periods is deftly handled. Meant to be an introductory survey, complete with chapter-by-chapter bibliography for further reading, Schaller succeeds admirably in his aims. Not in a league with J. K. Fairbanks' The United States and China in terms of scope, but a valuable book for its own purpose.