Description
Book SynopsisThe Beijing Olympics ensured that the world would be watching China in 2008, and the year turned out to be the most tumultuous and traumatic for the Chinese since the massive Tiananmen uprising of 1989. Crippling winter storms, riots in Tibet, the devastating Sichuan earthquake, and many other dramatic eventsincluding the PRC edging out the United States to become the country with the most Internet usersgrabbed international headlines. This innovative book, based on postings from the China Beat (the noted group blog/electronic magazine based at the University of California, Irvine) as well as works from other leading publications and completely new material, showcases the as-it-happened reports and commentaries of a mix of distinguished academics, high-profile journalists, and freelance writers, and up-and-coming young China specialists. China in 2008 takes the unique approach of bringing the timeliness of the blogosphere into book form, expanding and reflecting thoughtfully on stori
Trade Review[A] compelling first draft of history. Grouped by event or theme, the essays cover most of the major news stories of 2008, but with insight and perspective that never made the broadsheets. . . . It places contemporary China in a historical context that mainstream media seldom has the space to do, and offers a diverse and often very personal snapshot of China in one of its most turbulent years. * Far Eastern Economic Review *
Sane, well-informed, and rich in insights. * Asian Review Of Books *
Required reading for anyone trying to make sense of China's tumultuous year. This is the literary equivalent of a rowdy dinner party attended by some of the best and brightest China journalists, scholars, and thinkers. It offers a breadth of opinion and depth of context available only to those with a well-thumbed Rolodex of China specialists. But the book is accessible to the ordinary reader, and it combines the up-to-the-minute excitement of a blog with quirky academic takes on history in the making. -- Louisa Lim, National Public Radio, Shanghai correspondent
I've never been to China, but I've become a China-watcher thanks to the wonderful China Beat blog. This book is the best of that blog—and more. It's a fascinating way to get under China's skin. -- Mary Beard, University of Cambridge
There is more than enough here to keep any reader intrigued and instructed. -- Jonathan D. Spence, from the foreword
Table of ContentsChapter 1: Anxieties of a Prosperous Age Chapter 2: Tibet Chapter 3: Meanwhile, Across the Straits . . . Chapter 4: Nationalism and the Torch Chapter 5: Earthquake and Recovery Chapter 6: Shanghai Images in Beijing's Year Chapter 7: Tiananmen Reconsidered Chapter 8: The Road to the Olympics Chapter 9: The Olympics as Spectacle Chapter 10: China after the Games Chapter 11: Follow the Leader Chapter 12: Things Seen and Unseen Chapter 13: Pop Culture in a Global Age Chapter 14: Reinvented Traditions Chapter 15: China and the United States
