"This book could readily serve as a basic history course text owing to its introductory and explanatory character. However, it differs from other general, introductory history texts for two important reasons. First, it covers topics related to daily life and the social and cultural history of the Mongols while intentionally avoiding descriptive factual and narrative history for which there are many other books. Second, it is a general history book, but one which uses primary source material throughout. It introduces students to the importance of primary sources and stresses how these early texts provide the evidence and foundations for all the words, ideas, and thoughts which make up traditional history books. The excellent biographies, including one listing many of the translated primary source materials, ensure that this book will be an essential component in any library of the Mongol Empire" - "Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies".