Tibet

Reviews / Votes

This beautifully presented and generously illustrated history of Tibet from earliest times until the present day addresses the issue of Tibetan independence with fresh eyes . . . This excellent, well researched and very readable book with its multidisciplinary approach is full of amazing details that are often entertaining, and sometimes shocking. I would strongly recommend it as a starting point for any reader with an interest in discovering more about Tibet's past and her future path in the modern world. * Asian Affairs * This engaging history of Tibet by Klieger, an anthropologist who specialized in Tibet studies from the 1980s until his death in 2019, covers earliest times to the present. The book addresses two primary topics: how Tibetans' self-identity diverges from the perspectives of China, India, and the West and how "'Real' Tibet is somewhere between the dream and the cold reality of the nation state." . . . Klieger uses a broad range of both academic and nonacademic sources to support the text, which is handsomely illustrated with ancient maps, lovely thangka paintings, and photographs. Recommended. * Choice * Klieger's Tibet is a complex, storied survey of the mountainous homeland of the Dalai Lama . . . With the epic sweep of a historical saga, Tibet chronicles . . . centuries of invasions, geopolitical intrigues, assassinations, triumphs, and defeats . . . Engrossing, detailed, and enhanced by beautiful thangka paintings, photographs, and antique maps, Tibet reveals the glories and trials of a beleaguered yet enduring land. * Foreword Magazine * Making the case that for 2,500 years Tibet was a mostly independent state, Klieger traces the territory's history and considers its future. He asks whether it will achieve independence from China - which invaded in 1950 - and what the impact of the Dalai Lama's succession will be. * Survival * At a time when China is a rising geopolitical power and the international attention on Tibet experiences a decline, Klieger provides a crucial analysis of different and often contesting narratives on the past, present and possible futures of China-Tibet relations. * Dibyesh Anand, Professor of International Relations, University of Westminster *