Geotectonic Evolution of China

Anyone studying the geology and tectonics of China and who is not able to read Chinese will need to have a copy of this book: Ceotectonic Evolution of China and a companion copy of the Tectonic Map of China, scale 1:4000,000. Professor Huang Jiqing and his collaborators from the Institute of Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences have provided the English-speaking earth scientists with an extremely valuable tool that can be used towards understanding the geo­ b;;y of China. The introductory chapter is necessary to read prior to effective use of the material discussed in other chapters as it clearly presents the philosophy of this school of tectonics. The collaborators of the book acknowledge the important changes have been brough about by the plate tectonics theory but do not fully incorporate these ideas into their discussion. The book and map are testimony to the tremendous amount of geologic work accomplished by Chinese geologists in the past fourty years. As our Chinese collea­ gues begin to publish more English summaries such as this, it will become apparent to the rest of the world the vast amount of geologic mapping along with supportive stratigraphy and geophysics that has already been accomplished. Nearly all major non­ Chinese tracts on tectonic synthesis of the world treat China in only a cursory fashio)1 because so little is known of the area. With this text and map, future world tectonic synthesis can no longer afford to leave China out of the picture.