Kubla Khan, emperor of China, was a man who liked living large. In the thirteenth century, he ruled over the largest empire in the world, one that was light years ahead of the Western world in the arts and sciences. He built the city later known as Beijing into a magnificent capital, lived in palaces that were the last word in luxury, and threw birthday bashes for himself with forty thousand guests.

Small wonder that Marco Polo trekked over fife thousand miles to meet the great Khan in 1275, in order to witness firsthand such marvels as silk production, exotic spices, and money made of paper.

Always cast in a supporting role in the numerous books about Marco Polo, Kubla Khan now takes center stage in a splendid picture book biography. With astonishingly beautiful and detailed illustrations by Robert Byrd and witty, incisive text by Kathleen Krull, here is a book that finally gives Kubla Khan his due.

From the dust jacket