Softcover, 732 pages, bw illustrations, Boulder 1996, very good
This detailed history offers the most comprehensive account available of Tibetan nationalism, Sino-Tibetan relations and the issue of Tibetan self-determination. Wareen Smith explores Tibet's ethnic and national origins, the birth of the Tibetan state, the Buddhist state and its relations with China, Tibet's quest for independence and Chinese takeover of Tibet after 1950. Focusing on post-1950 Tibet under the Chinese Communist Party's nationality theory and policy, their application in Tibet and the consequent rise of Tibetan nationalist, Smith concludes that the essence of the Tibetan issue is self-determination and bolsters his argument with a comprehensive analysis of modern Tibetan and Chinese political histories.