Selected Product:
| The Emperor's Silent Army: Terracotta Warriors of Ancient China
Hardcover
Author: Jane O'Connor
Publisher: Viking Juvenile
Release Date: 2002-04-15
Reading Level: Young Adult
ISBN-10: 0670035122
ISBN-13: 9780670035120
List Price: $17.99
Average Customer Rating:
 | |
Made in China: Ideas and Inventions from Ancient China
ISBN-10: 1881896145
ISBN-13: 9781881896142
List Price:$19.95
Ancient China (DK Eyewitness Books)
ISBN-10: 0756613825
ISBN-13: 9780756613822
List Price:$15.99
Confucius: Golden Rule, The
ISBN-10: 0439139570
ISBN-13: 9780439139571
List Price:$17.99
The Eternal Army: The Terracotta Army of the First Chinese Emperor (Timeless Treasures)
ISBN-10: 8854400823
ISBN-13: 9788854400825
List Price:$60.00
The Qin Terracotta Army: Treasures of Lintong (National Museums & Monuments of Ancient China Ser.))
ISBN-10: 0856674508
ISBN-13: 9780856674501
List Price:$30.00
|
To use our price comparison to get the cheapest price, please click on the "Find the Cheapest Price" button located above for The Emperor's Silent Army: Terracotta Warriors of Ancient China by Jane O'Connor (ISBN-10: 0670035122, ISBN-13: 9780670035120).
At this time we have not yet written a review for The Emperor's Silent Army: Terracotta Warriors of Ancient China by Jane O'Connor (ISBN-10: 0670035122, ISBN-13: 9780670035120). Please continue to keep checking back to this page as we are constantly adding reviews.
Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com
Describes the archaeological discovery of thousands of life-sized terracotta warrior statues in northern China in 1974, and discusses the emperor who had them created and placed near his tomb.
Great book!
| Customer Rating: | | I bought this book to read with my daughter before we went on vacation to China and actually saw the Terra Cotta Warriors. I doesn't come close to showing how phenomenal they really are but the history is wonderful and now it's a great reminder of a wonderful trip. |
The story of the 7,5000 warriors who guard Qin, China's first emperor
| Customer Rating: | While on vacation in China, Jane O'Connor visited the thousands of life-sized terracotta warrior statues discovered near the tomb on an emperor in northern China. She was inspired to find out more about both the army of ghostly gray warriors and the man who had ordered their creation. But as O'Connor read everything available about the first emperor and his buried army she discovered that a book on the subject had not yet been written for children. "The Emperor's Silent Army: Terracotta Warriors of Ancient China" rectifies that mistake.
In March 1974 three farmers digging a well near the city of Xian in Lintong County of the People's Republic of China, discovered the clay head of a "pottery man." Neither the farmers nor the archaeologists who arrived to investigate the figure had ever seen anything similar to the life-like figure, and where astounded to discover dozens, and then hundreds and finally thousands of these terracotta figures. When the excavation was done, an army of 7,500 soldiers and horses has been uncovered (so far), after being buried for more than 2,200 years. The life-size figures weighed as much as four hundred pounds each and wore knee-length robes, armor made from small iron "fish scales," and elaborate topknot hairdos (the low-ranking infantrymen did not wear armor). The figures stand at attention and archaeologists also found the hundreds of real bronze swords, daggers, battle-axes, and arrowheads, these silent warriors were carrying.
After sharing the story of the discovery of the figures, O'Connor tells the story of Qin Shihuang, the divine Son of Heaven, who was the first emperor or China. Qin was a paranoid tyrant, and fearing that grave robbers would loot the treasures in his tomb after he died. O'Connor talks about the measures Qin took to protect his final resting place, which included the terracotta figures, stationed in underground trenches, less than a mile from the tomb. The details about the figures, as to why they do not wear helmets or shields and why they are facing east, are quite interesting. There is logic to their arrangement that O'Connor is able to explain, a well as the difference between the 350 chariot horses and the more than 100 cavalry horses. There are more than forty full-color photographs in the book, which help to distinguish between the different types of warriors. The only disappointment here is that there are not more such photographs.
One of the most amazing things about the figures is that of the two thousand unearthed at the time O'Connor's book was published, no two had been discovered to be the same. The figures represent different ages, different parts of China, and even different temperaments. A colored computer image shows how one of the figures would have looked originally when it was painted. Another fascinating section has to do with modern artisans making replicas, following the techniques of 2,200 years ago, to help archeologists understand how the original figures were created. The final chapters of the book are devoted to what it was like inside the Emperor's tomb, where the body may be wearing a jade funeral suit (the government has no intention of actually opening the tomb and looking, but other tombs have been opened in the past to five us some ideas), and Qin's legacy, which is mainly the first Great Wall of China that he had made with a workforce of half a million slave laborers working for a dozen years. However, it would be Qin's silent army that is probably most responsible for what immortality the first emperor possesses today. Seeing them in person would be an unforgettable experience, and O'Connor's book does an excellent job of making that impression on her readers, young and old alike. |
Hidden arrows, Poisoned King, and Buried Treasure!
| Customer Rating: | Rich with exciting historical details, The Emperor's Silent Army: Terracotta Warriors of Ancient China by Jane O'Connor offers a well-researched book that tantalizes the reader with tales of a poisoned King, a camouflaged dead body, and a booby-trapped tomb. The targeted audience of ages 9-12 will thrill with the adventure while simultaneously profiting from their newfound knowledge of China's first Emperor, Qin Shihuang, and his war and burial customs. Heavily strewn with color photographs, computer images, maps, drawings, and charts, the book easily captures interest and successfully holds attention with its succinct wording and short chapters that directly complement the images.
Jane O'Connor's career spanning roles as editor-at-large, president of mass market children's books at Penguin, and prolific author is crowned by her most recent gem, The Emperor's Silent Army: Terracotta Warriors of Ancient China. Realizing that no children's books had thoroughly documented the world wonder discovered in China, O'Connor successfully fills the void. This book is a must for any library!
The only negative aspect is that the book fails to be part of a larger history series since once the book is read, the reader will want to read more. The detailed bibliography and author's note provide a scope for further reading on the Terracotta Warriors, but readers will long to learn the same concise and tantalizing information on other subjects as well! Hopefully, Jane O'Connor will follow with more books to engage children and adults since The Emperor's Silent Army: Terracotta Warriors of Ancient China masterfully explores its subject. |
|
