"Easternization is the defining trend of our age--the growing wealth of Asian nations is transforming the international balance of power. This shift to the East is shaping the lives of people all over the world, the fate of nations, and the great questions of war and peace. A troubled but rising China is now challenging America's supremacy, and the ambitions of other Asian powers--including Japan, North Korea, India, and Pakistan--have the potential...

"In Midnight's Descendants, John Keay presents the first general history of present-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka and its peoples. The book examines the complex web of affiliations--of kinship, locality, language, tribe, clan, profession, and caste--that shape relations among the countries in the region. Keay argues that correlating and contrasting the fortunes of all the constituent nations since the 1947 partition affords...

Chronicles the journey of Belliveau and O'Donnell, two ordinary guys, as they set out to follow Polo's historic route. The film weaves footage from the duo's often perilous voyage with Marco Polo's descriptions and experiences. Detailed are their highs and lows as they retrace Polo's path, trying to see what he saw and feel what he must have felt.

In a remote monastery high up in the mountains, an old master, a young monk and an orphaned boy devote themselves to their Buddhist teachings. As the master faces death, he must lead his disciples away from their past ties to the outside world and its rapidly changing values, and point them toward their quest for enlightenment.