Saturday, November 25, 2017

Are We There Yet?


(I am officially curious about that statue/statues...)

This year my study series has been the Discovery of Asia, with a stated goal of reading two books in Asian (primarily Indian and Chinese) history per month.   Other challenges and themes have cut into that, aided and abetted by some general sloth,  and I’m five books shy of making my goal.   But I have a month left, and I’m going to see if I can’t make it!     I have two books in the post (Factory Girls and Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory, both ‘life in modern China’-esque books),   two on my Kindle,   Nehru’s Discovery of India, and my local library’s holdings, so I’m fixed for content.    Speaking of, here's another micro-review, this time from a book I was reading during my St. Augustine trip and...er, left in the weekend bag when I threw it in the closet.




Dragon Rising uses each geographical region of China to review an aspect of the country; Shanghai stars in a chapter on China's infrastructure projects, and other areas cover agriculture, manufacture and shipping, the environment, and so on. The final chapter is particularly interesting as it addresses China's influence on other countries in Southeast Asia and abroad, as in Latin America. The photography is beautiful.

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5 comments:

  1. MudpuddleNovember 25, 2017 at 8:21 PM

    the role of China in the near future is a fascinating prospect... lots of speculation, but time will tell, maybe sooner than we think...

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    Replies
    1. StephenNovember 26, 2017 at 12:41 PM

      I've seen articles warning that China is or has peaked, but between them and India it's going to be an interesting century.

      Delete
  2. Brian JosephNovember 26, 2017 at 7:42 AM

    I like the fact that you read based on a particular topic over a period of time.

    Dragon Rising sounds interesting and important. It seems like a good way to survey such a large nation.

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    Replies
    1. StephenNovember 26, 2017 at 12:43 PM

      Thanks, Brian. I tried it for the first time in 2014 and accidentally returned to it in 2016 when a middle east series turned into a year-long survey. This one was more deliberate, and the one I have planned for next year has more structure.

      Delete
  3. StephenNovember 27, 2017 at 6:11 PM

    Objective or biased...hmm. Well, it's not pro-government, but does praise the progress China's people have been making.

    ReplyDelete

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