Chinese Steles is an exceptional work, useful for those unfamiliar with the genre of steles yet thorough enough to satisfy a scholarly need for depth. Dorothy Wong presents her study in a very coherent fashion: beginning with an overview of the stele within a broader Chinese historical context before moving on to consider the form as it was appropriated by Buddhist and Northern Wei concerns. With the brunt of the study focused on Buddhist steles, Wong effectively argues for an appropriation of the medium to relay the new Buddhist message, and she uses a regional construct to chart the connections between the Northern Wei dynasty court and the rise of the Buddhist stele primarily in the northern areas of China. Wong rightly notes that although a number of studies have been done on individual steles over the years, no one had considered the works as a category unto themselves; her text thus provides new materials along with a new approach for those who study Buddhist art or ritual practice. Making good use of a wide variety of resources, Wong integrates works from religious studies, history, and art history; her synthesis of these materials provides an alternative in-depth look at a...