Michael Yahuda’s ‘Hong Kong’ is one of the few good books about the 1997 handover
A clear-eyed assessment of the run-up to the Hong Kong handover from Britain to the People's Republic of China.
Paul French
Paul French studied history, economics, and Mandarin at university and has an MPhil in economics from the University of Glasgow. He is the author of a number of books, including the New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award–winning Midnight in Peking, Carl Crow: A Tough Old China Hand, and Through the Looking Glass: China’s Foreign Journalists from Opium Wars to Mao.
More Posts
When the British lost Hong Kong to the Japanese
Philip Snow's "The Fall of Hong Kong" is the definitive account of the Japanese invasion and occupation of Hong Kong starting on Christmas Day 1941, all the way through the Imperial Army's departure and the rebuilding of this British colony.
A portrait of Hong Kong in the waning years of British rule
"And if they fail, and the people of Hong Kong remain to the end powerless to govern their own affairs, vulnerable to anything that may come out of China? Then the British will leave behind them, if not a sense of betrayal, at least a sense of disappointment."
Sanmao went against the stereotypes of her time
The original Chinese-language edition of Sanmao’s "Stories of the Sahara" was incredibly popular in Taiwan and Hong Kong, and throughout China, with the author representing a very different type of Chinese woman.
Exiled writer Chiang Yee, through war and loneliness, lived quite the life
Born in Jiujiang, Chiang Yee found himself in England in 1933, where he became an exile after war broke out back home. He became a "silent traveler," and wrote books beloved in his adopted land.
What the U.S. looked like to an early 20th-century Chinese diplomat
"Of all nations in the world, America is the most interesting to the Chinese…It is certainly a most extraordinary country. The people are wonderful and are most interesting and instructive to the Chinese."
Jeep in China: A failed joint venture at least makes for a fun read
"Later, American Motors officials would admit that the Las Vegas meeting had been a disaster. If there was anything they had learned about China, they said, it was this: Don’t take the Chinese to Las Vegas."
How does one lose a fortune in China? ‘Mr. China’ knows
Tim Clissold's memoir about losing millions would be tragic if it weren't so funny — we laugh, we cry, and we root for the main characters, even though we know they failed.
The told story of Wham! in China
Simon Napier-Bell was a composer, songwriter, record producer, and author living a hedonistic life in London. Bored, he decided to try the ultimate adventure: making Wham! the first Western pop group to ever perform in the People's Republic of China.