Rating: 
Summary: A great book with a huge set of references
Review: As a kid in school, when I learned about exploration by the Europeans and looked at some of the European maps that showed lands that they had yet to discover, I wondered who had been there first to map it. In March, I found this book, and it all made sense.I knew some Chinese history from school, but it was mainly ancient China BCE. This book helped to fill in the gaps. When you read about the size of their ships, compare them to European ships at the time, and get a sense of their maritime history, you get a sense of excitement that what the author proposes must be true to some degree. Further research will show how much of it is true...especially of the stones left worldwide and the sunken ships made of teak. To me, there is too much evidence to discount the theories in this book. I imagine they will be refined over time...and am curious about the final verdict. After reading this book just after the book Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen, I don't know how history teachers in our educational system can sleep at night. Why is it that we have to learn so much credible history in our 20s and 30s for the first time?
Rating:
Summary: Will we change the history we teach our children?
Review: Years ago I heard that a child told a teacher, "Columbus did not discover America." "Of course he did," said the teacher. "No, he did not," insisted the child, "the Indians were already there."
That is what came to mind when I read Menzies' amazing book 1421 The year China discovered America. We may know that the history we have been teaching is, at times, prejudicial and wrong, but will we change it? Will historians take a long hard look at Menzies' evidence and set about to prove whether or not it is indeed true, or will they just scoff at it and reject it out of hand? To reject it is easy. To take the time to verify it will take far more energy than some may have. There is far too much in this book to just blandly say, "It is not true." Did the Portuguese have some prior knowledge of what lay across the Atlantic? The facts are there. Are our historians honest enough to take another look at our accepted history? I think so, and I can't wait for them to do so.
Rating: 
Summary: What IF China had sailed towards the Americas.
Review: To answer the query of the review which asks, is this book a reliable history? No. This is not a work of history. It is fiction. This is a 'what if' narrative.
As a professor of Chinese history, I cringe now thinking about the time that I will have to take during class, time that could be used teaching about Chinese history and civilization, to disabuse students who have heard about this caper.
My opinion: Mr. Menzies is sincere. He seems perfectly intelligent and decent. However, there is no evidence that Chinese were in North America during the early 15th century. The conclusions reached in this book are the product of the imagination. This is not my 'opinion.' The 'evidence' presented is bizarrely not credible. Fantasy. But the publishers knew what they were doing when they signed the deal, the book is selling. The more interesting story, which some scholars are telling, is this: that the technology which explorers such as Christopher Columbus used to reach the 'new world' was borrowed from China. A few examples of Chinese technology that found its way into Portuguese and other ships: 1. fixed rudder; 2. multiple masts; 3. compass; 4. cannon; 5. gunpowder; 6. airtight bulkheads. Perhaps the most significant part of this project is this: Mr. Menzies stated that he was surprised to meet two professors in China who were making the same argument. This idea, that China 'discovered America', reflects a new nationalism in China. (but is not an idea that is popular among professors in China). On the other hand, as someone who cares deeply about China's history and about US-China understanding, perhaps this book will stimulate an interest among people to learn more about China. So, maybe all this will have a happy ending
Rating:
Summary: Junk History
Review: All right, I don't know any Medieval Chinese history, so I'm open to this story at the beginning. But I'm from Missouri, so when, on page 415, I find "the Mississippi River west of Kansas City" that old show-me attitude really kicks in, and I go on my voyage of discovery on the Internet to find the sites debunking Menzies. And I don't even need to translate them from the Portuguese. The ideas in the book are interesting, even though perhaps this "history" should be reclassified as fiction.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible story - essential reading
Review: This book engages the reader in one of the most exciting and amazing searches for the truth in history that I have ever read. The author draws one into the very methods he uses to untangle the mysteries of pre-colombian settlements and artifacts throuought the world and weaves the fabric of the great Chinese treasure ships into an extremely plausible historic interpretation. It makes the reader eager to turn each page with a sense of anticipation and wonder that continues throughout the book. 1421 is a must for anyone who considers themselves educated.
Rating:
Summary: A History I Never Knew
Review: In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean in search of new land. This is what westernized history would have us believe. Gavin Menzies, a retired Royal Navy Submarine commanding officer and amateur historian, is the author of the book, "1421: The year China discovered the world." Menzies writes about a history that only a few individuals have heard of. In the novel 1421 it is stated that the largest fleet the world had ever seen sailed from China. The Emperor of China and his fleet journeyed across the Indian Ocean to discover new land and were the first to colonize and inhabit North America. Admiral Zheng, who served under several powerful Chinese emperors, commanded this journey using star charts. This book contains compelling evidence that Chinese explorers were able to solve the problem of longitude long before Western seafarers. Artifacts of the Chinese voyage have been discovered all around the coastal areas of North and South America. Zheng and his Chinese fleet not only discovered America 72 years before Columbus but also colonized the new world. Menzies' controversial book is fascinating. His theory that the Chinese had discovered North America before Columbus will appeal to historical conservatives and skeptics alike. One possible area for concern in regards to Menzies' theory is that western scholars will require incontrovertible proof to support his claim. The claim that China predated Columbus' voyage to the America is truly interesting. Despite some shortcomings, Menzies' book offers an interesting read, one that will satisfy inquiring minds and historians alike.
Rating: 
Summary: Erroneous in Detail but Persuasive Overall
Review: This fascinating but flawed book expounds the thesis that Chinese fleets explored most of the world decades before Europeans voyaged to the Americas (according to the author, explorers such as Columbus already knew the Americas were there because they had access to maps based on Chinese records). Menzies even argues that Chinese colonies were planted in the Americas, disappearing from view as they mingled with indigenous populations.
In his personal quest, Menzies has accumulated a vast amount of circumstantial evidence in support of his theory, attaching to it the interpretations most supportive of his argument. Some of this evidence is persuasive, but much of it is only suggestive. Nonetheless, the sheer weight of evidence will cause most readers to conclude that there is some truth to Menzies' thesis, at least enough to warrant more professional research. That makes one wonder why Western historians have ignored or dismissed the evidence for centuries. And how much history is unknown to us because political decisions dictated the destruction of records, as was the case in Ming China. At the very least, this book should provoke a re-evaluation of Chinese influence on the West before the age of European expansion. Menzies continues to pursue his theory, inviting others to provide supporting evidence through his web site. He could save himself future embarrassment by hiring better fact-checkers from a variety of disciplines who would catch the sometimes glaring errors in this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Thesis was not supported by numismatic evidence
Review: The author's thesis was not supported by numismatic evidence. Chinese copper 'cash', i.e., holed coins, were produced in prodigious quantities. Why have no hoards been found in the Americas? They have been found in the Persian Gulf and East African ports.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting Premise, Bad Methodology
Review: The basic idea of Mr. Menzies started out with, that the Chinese could have performed a voyage such as the one he describes, is certainly accurate. Technologically, they had the capacity to do so. And this fact makes it worthwhile to explore wether or not they did indeed do so. But Mr. Menzies is clearly not the person to perform such an undertaking- and this is not because he lacks credentials as a professional historian. There are many works of "amatuer" history that are quite luadable and accurate, and many works of historical fiction (such as those of Stephen Pressfield) that, while fiction, are underpinned by an enormous amount of good research. Mr. Menzies is the wrong man for the job because he has already begun his research firmly convinced of the conclusion of that research. He then proceeds to take every piece of evidence and jam it inot the framework he has already constructed, regardless of how well it fits (or doesn't) and (I can only assume)discard bits of evidence that are inconvenient. One of the problems with assessing the accuracy of this or any other historical work is that we are only allowed to see what the author presents us in an entirely one sided "conversation." The way I generally decide wether or not to "trust" an historical work is to verify the author's statements when I can, and if these statements are generally trustworthy, I am often willing to take the rest "on faith." Many of the areas of Mr. Menzies claims (that I know about) are complete nonsense. And some are of a manner of nonsense that leads me to question his familiarity with even basic history. For example, on page 415 he claims to have set up a team of researchers who could "read medieval spanish and portuguese, including Brazilian Portuguese." I am astonished by this, as there in fact is no such language as "medieval Brazilian Portuguese." The initial Portuguese explorers and colonists of Brazil spoke medieval portuguese, but a Brazilian varient of Portuguese did not emerge until modern times, and even to this day the differences between continental portguese and Brazilian are more a matter of some vocabulary and a great deal of pronunciation difference than anything else. This would be akin to me claiming that I had assembled a team of researchers who could "read medieval english, including American English." Linguistic evidence figures heavily into the book. Unfortunately for Mr. Menzies, I speak portuguese fluently, and so am not at all impressed with his vlaims about portugese words and their origin. For example, one of the pieces of "evidence" that the Chinese colonized Brasil is the fact that the Brazilian word for "raft" (Jangada) is similar to the Tamil word for raft (zuingada, if I recall correctly). Thus the Brazilians must have learned that word from the Chinese treasure fleets, and their tamil fellow travellers. Or perhaps, Brazilians being portugese speakers,they could have brought the word with them from Portugal, where "raft" is also "Jangada." My belief is that, given the extensive trade contacts and Portuguese colonies in India, either the tamils learned that word from the Portuguese, or vice versa. In India, not in Brazil. Not that this constitutes an absolute refutation of Mr. Menzies thesis, but it does indicate the fact that he is willing to make forthright claims in areas where he has no knowledge. This leads me to doubt his other forthright claims in areas where I cannot verify what he says. All in all, I founf the book worthwhile for what little information it contained about the treasure fleet, and certainly it leads me to beleive that we ought to set some better historians upon this trail. I would like to see what they would have to say.
Rating:
Summary: Very complete, articulate and entertaining book
Review: I have enjoyed this book greatly. I love to read books that speculate about the past including the lost civilization/ ancient cataclysm types of books. I have to believe that many of these authors are exposing some hidden truths. However, what is so good about Menzies book is that he actually gives better answers for many of the anomalies cited in the types of books mentioned above. Its much more believable to follow his hypothesis that within the past millenium the Chinese visited and possibly colonized the Aztecs than it is to believe that Aztec and Olmec civilization derived from Atlantis. True he does string together a lot of speculation prior to jumping to some conclusions (like the Bimini road being a ramp made to winch damaged junks ashore) but its still fun seeing if he can hold it together. I do think that his perspective as a naval captain gives some great insights that conventional historians just don't bring to the table and of course they will vilify an amateur like him whether he is right or not, because he is jumping into their turf without the proper papers!! Menzies book is very readable, he tells a good story and keeps you interested, but he also cites all evidence he can. I'd love to spend time researching some of his "smoking guns" like the chinese junk wreck buried near San Francisco!! Its a very good read...
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