China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know® 3rd Edition by Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom (PDF)

Description

In this fully revised and updated third edition of China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know®, Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom and Maura Elizabeth Cunningham provide cogent answers to urgent questions regarding the world’s newest superpower and offer a framework for understanding China’s meteoric rise from developing country to superpower. Framing their answers through the historical legacies – Confucian thought, Western and Japanese imperialism, the Mao era, and the Tiananmen Square massacre – that largely define China’s present-day trajectory, Wasserstrom and Cunningham introduce readers to the Chinese Communist Party, the building boom in Shanghai, and the environmental fallout of rapid Chinese industrialization. They also explain unique aspects of Chinese culture, such as the one-child policy, and provide insight into Chinese-American relations, a subject that has become increasingly fraught during the Trump era. As Wasserstrom and Cunningham draw parallels between Chinaand other industrialized nations during their periods of development, in particular the United States during its rapid industrialization in the 19th century, they also predict how we might expect China to act in the future vis-à-vis the United States, Russia, India, and its East Asian neighbors.Updated to include perspectives on Hong Kong’s shifting political status, as well as an expanded discussion of President Xi Jinping’s time in office, China in the 21st Century provides a concise and insightful introduction to this significant global power.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: Review “It is always difficult to find a good introduction to contemporary China that does not deter newcomers into the field. It is particularly excruciating to recommend a book that assesses the to-and-fro of China’s history with easiness and academic rigour. Happily, Jeffrey Wasserstrom and Maura Cunningham’s third edition of China in the 21st Century gives us that and much more. The colossal task has been taken with unflappable conviction, fulfilling the wishes of the neophyte and satisfying the critical eye of the seasoned China hands.” — Pablo Ignacio Ampuero Ruiz, NewBooks.AsiaPraise for the third edition: “China in the 21st Century is comprehensive, wide-ranging, succinct, and eminently readable. For anyone who wants to understand today’s China, this is a terrific place to start.” — Jiayang Fan, Staff Writer, The New Yorker”I found this book incredibly useful when I was ambassador to China and tried to give a copy to every new colleague who arrived in Beijing. It’s a great read, comprehensive and well researched. Wasserstrom and Cunningham give you all you need to know to start understanding China.” — Jorge Guajardo, former Mexican Ambassador to China”Essential reading for scholars and general readers alike seeking to understand China’s past, present and future. Indispensable.” — Peter Frankopan, Professor of Global History, Oxford University, author of The Silk Roads: A New History of the World”It is difficult to be concise, clear, and correct all at the same time. Wasserstrom and Cunningham have managed to pull this trick off in China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know. The essentials of China’s history and politics are engagingly distilled in question-answer format, providing brief but authoritative explanations of the core issues that still permeate modern Chinese society. Should be an essential carry-on item for the plane trip to China-whether in a student backpack or an executive briefcase.” — David Moser, Dean of Yenching Academy, Peking UniversityPraise for previous editions: “A useful resource for those who want a greater understanding of the how and why of China’s emergence as a global power.” — Library Journal”Readers who know a fair bit about China already will be left better informed, looking at what they already knew in another light. Readers new to the subject couldn’t start in a better place.” — Urbanatomy.com”This slim volume does the impossible: it provides the essential knowledge that intelligent readers need to have about China historically and today and it can be read in less time than it take to fly from the U.S. to China!” — Susan Shirk, author of China: Fragile Superpower”A sure-footed guide through the thickets of China’s history and the turbo-driven landscape of its current affairs. Indispensable reading.” — Andrew Ross, author of Fast Boat to China”A remarkable feat that melds the insights from deep scholarly immersion in history with an up-to-the-minute grasp on contemporary developments in China and beyond.” — Haiyan Lee, Stanford University “[China in the 21st Century] has asked most of the questions that the intelligent visitor to China will ask, and has answered them lucidly, vividly, and originally. Anyone who wants to know about the coming superpower can profit from this book.” — Timothy Garton Ash, author of The File”Jeffrey Wasserstom has found the perfect collaborator in Maura Cunningham. Together, they have produced, analyzed, and digested more of the best research on China’s past and present than a reader could ever hope to match. And now they have taken on the hardest question of all: What truly matters most in understanding China? In this crystalline and up-to- date edition, they have given us the answers. I keep this book within reach at all times.” — Evan Osnos, The New Yorker About the Author Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom is a Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine. His previous books include Global Shanghai, China’s Brave New World, and Twentieth-Century China.Maura Elizabeth Cunningham is an Associate at the University of Michigan’s Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies. She has written on modern Chinese history for the Wall Street Journal and the LA Review of Books.

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐I think this book it is a easy way to aproach to China’s history and present.The chapters of the book are very short and the book doesn’t keep to long on the same item. I recomend to anyone who wants to know about China and doesn’t have much time.Sorry for my english, I am from Argentina.Pienso que el libro es una forma fácil de aproximarse a la historia y al presente de China.Los capítulos del libro son cortos y el libro no se queda mucho tiempo en un mismo tema. Lo recomiendo para cualquiera que desee conocer más sobre China y no tenga mucho tiempo.

⭐Great book to learn a little bit about a variety of topics about China, from ancient history to current events.

⭐I learned a lot about China reading this book. It even cleared up a few misconceptions I had about China. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn about China. Check out the authors for anyone interested in the Asia pacific region.

⭐Its fails in so many things about what is really going on in China. Just as an example, it mentioned that China is building a massive high railway system that it plans to use renewable to power it trains and each can accommodate about a thousand passengers and they are the longest and biggest in the world wherein the US, does not even have a single mile of high speed railway, it is not even comparable. Did not mention about battery technology, AI, electric cars, Greening the dessert and its gonna be a clean energy behemoth and superpower for years to come while we languish in our pathetic politics which is full of lies and corrupt, inutile leaders but let me just stopped there.

⭐With the bad habit of needing to start a book at the beginning, I had to be a third through before I learned anything about the 20th Century, let alone the 21st Century. Access to history is important, but slowed down preparation for a two-week class on Today’s China I took. I will, though, pass the book on to daughter who has adopted two children from China.

⭐Most of the book covers Chinese history which is useful and informative in itself but only a small portion of the book provides guidance on how that history shapes the people and country now and going forward. The book is also written in short sections on specific historical topics and so doesn’t really have much of a flow to it.

⭐China in the 21st Century by J. WasserstromA very helpful book for someone who plans to travel in China in 2013.Frances B. Durkin

⭐This is a nice supplement to a fullscale textbook on contemporary China. It’s Q&A format helps reinforce the information students should be learning without excessive complexity but with sufficient nuance.

⭐What everyone needs to know’ is the sub-title and that just about sums this lovely little book up to a tee. It’s a little over 130 fact-filled pages long with around 25 additional pages of really useful footnotes and further reading suggestions – great for that long haul flight. It does have a very Sino-US bias – not surprising given the inextricable links between the two countries and if the book has a fault it is that the complex relationships between China and it’s near neighbours are not given sufficient airing. Notwithstanding, a great book for getting up to speed in a hurry and a must if you are keen to understand what is going on in this fascinating country.

⭐I am travelling to China for the first time at the end of the month and this book has provided me with an excellent introduction to this complex, multifaceted country which these days appears to be permanently on the brink of some sort of world domination, without ever quite getting there. The author is especially good on the summarising the dauntingly deep and sprawling history of the country in a way that shows how constantly relevant the country’s past is to its present and future.

⭐Very superficial. It does not bring anything really new to the table.

⭐Well worth a read for anyone who is interested in the new world and it’s new superpowers. Great value too.

⭐Easy read and worth picking up. A bit unorthodox in it’s composition at times but otherwise an interesting counterpoint to a lot of stuff written about china.

Keywords

Free Download China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know® 3rd Edition in PDF format
China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know® 3rd Edition PDF Free Download
Download China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know® 3rd Edition 2018 PDF Free
China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know® 3rd Edition 2018 PDF Free Download
Download China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know® 3rd Edition PDF
Free Download Ebook China in the 21st Century: What Everyone Needs to Know® 3rd Edition