The breathtaking story in words and images of the rebuilding of an earthquake-devastated land The 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake was the worst earthquake in the history of the People’s Republic of China, and it stands as one of the greatest natural disasters of the 21st century. The earthquake took the lives of 87,000, destroyed millions of homes, and turned 500,000 square kilometers into a virtual wasteland. The Sichuan province, however, has undergone a rebuilding of unprecedented scope. Filled with full-color photos of the land and people thriving after just four years, The Rebirth of Our Land chronicles one of the most significant reconstruction efforts of all time, as millions of men and women of China rallied together to rebuild Wenchuan from the ground up.