The Perilous Frontier

Thomas Barfield's The Perilous Frontier: Nomadic Empires and China, 221 BC to AD 1757 is, as its name suggests, an analysis of the relations between China and the peoples of the steppe from the Han Dynasty to the rise of the Ching (Manchu) Dynasty. I found it fascinating; a review is under the cut.

( Three-Way Contest )