A Short History of China and Southeast Asia: Tribute, Trade and Influence

The reason I give this book such a poor rating is not that it is badly written (which it is not). The bad rating is because the book is not a history of China AND Southeast Asia, but a history of the relations BETWEEN China and Southeast Asia. If you are looking for a history of how these regions have dealt with one another and you are familiar with each of their independent histories already, I recommend the text. If you are looking for an overall history of the area, then I recommend looking elsewhere.