The purpose of this book is to discuss the role of the Chinese in setting off the European Renaissance. I got this book and another by this author at my used bookstore here in Chattanooga. I decided to go ahead and finish this one, as it had been on my shelf for some time and I am currently in a class about the Renaissance. I believe that the Chinese played a large role in a lot of things, with their technological advances and trade. I think this could have been a much more plausible book if the author wasn't a space cadet. 

I would actually rate this zero stars, which is not something I normally say. The only salvation for this book was that it did have an interesting concept, and there were a few parts of the book that caught my interest and I made a note to look further into. This book was the absolute worst book I have read so far this year...so out of 50. I found this book to be nearly mind-numbingly boring.