Books - China

China Directory 2004. Japan: Radio Press Inc. (Contact: rp-printer@mbf.sphere.ne.jp, tel 044-833-4421, fax 044-833-4422) A directory with full listing of all government agencies and key personnel. Available in simplified Chinese, Japanese and English.

China Focus – Centrally Administered Municipalities. Chen, Dr Jian Fu, Hong, Dr Li Jian (2001)-Singapore: CCH Asia Pte. (Contact: 11 Keppel Road RCL Centre #11-01, Singapore, 089057) This book focuses on the issues related to the establishment and operation of foreign-related business in the four Centrally administered municipalities – Beijing, Chong Qing, Shang Hai, and Tian Jin.

Investing in China: Ten Years of the Open Door Policy. Pomfret, Richard. (1991). London: Harvester Wheatsheaf. This book offers important new analytical insights into the problems and opportunities of direct foreign investment in both developing and non-market economies.

China's Unfinished Economic Revolution. Lardy, Nicholas R. (1998). Washington DC: Brookings Institution Press. (Contact: 1775 Massachusetts Ave. N.W., Washington D.C. 20036) This book examines the state of the Chinese banking system and the reforms that are needed.

Investing in China. Gamble, William B. (2002). Westport, CT: Quorum Books. (Contact: 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881) This book provides proper guidance regarding the infrastructure’s impact on risk management, economic forecasting through a combination of legal research, economic analysis and investigative journalism drawn from 10 years of experience in the china market.

The China Investor – Getting Rich with the Next Superpower. Bacani, Cesar. (2003). Singapore: John Wiley & Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd. (Contact: 2 Clementi Loop, #02-01, Singapore 129809, email: enquiry@wiley.com.sg) This book is based on the proposition that there is no turning back on China’s market-opening reforms. It looks at firms started by a new breed of private-sector entrepreneurs and the pitfalls of investing in a restructuring economy.

Sun Tzu War & Management. Hou, Wee-Chow, Sheang, Lee-Khai, Hidajat, Bambang Walujo. (1991). Singapore: Addison-Wesley Publishers Ltd. (Contact: www.aw-bc.com) This book develops the analogy between the world of business and the world of war, and blends the application of military strategies with modern business practices.

China Business Strategies for the ‘90s. De Keijzer, Arne J. (1992). Berkeley, CA: Pacific View Press. (Contact: 3011 Acton Street, Berkeley, CA 94702) A detailed compilation of principles and case studies that introduce the ways and approach to developing a business in China.

China, Inc: How to Do Business with the Chinese. Macleod, Roderick. (1988). New York: Bantam Books. The author uses case studies to expose the pitfalls inherent in doing business with the Chinese culture.

China Streetsmart. Chan, John L. (2003). Singapore: Prentice Hall Pearson Education Asia Pte Ltd. (Contact: 23/25 First Lok Yang Road, Jurong Singapore 629733) This book covers topics such as corruption, protecting your intellectual property, how to negotiate deals, and the importance of demystifying the language. The book provides examples to help China investors improve their effectiveness and create profitable businesses.

The China Management Handbook. Boos, Christine, Boos, Engelbert, Sieren, Frank. (2003). New York: Palgrave Macmillan. (Contact: 175 Fifth Ave. New York, NY 10010) A practical and useful framework for managers with responsibilities in China. By pointing out social and economic differences, as well as pragmatic ways to overcome them, this book provides insight and answers to questions such as “what should a China Manager know about China’s Economy, Politics and Society”, “what is important in personnel development”, “how do I get reliable market information”, and “how do I plan a successful marketing campaign in China”.

Doing Business in China. Freshfields.(2003). Huntington, NY: Juris Publishing Inc. (Contact: 71 New Street, Huntington, New York 11743) This is detailed and comprehensive resource for examining the full range of business issues arising under Chinese Law. It includes chapters on company law, introduction to foreign trade, processing and countertrade, taxation of foreign companies and accounting in China.

China Business – The Rules of the Game. Blackman, Carolyn. (2000). Crows Nest, Australia: Allen & Unwin. (Contact: frontdesk@allen-unwin.com.au) China. It cuts through myths surrounding trading with China and offers practical guidance through numerous frank interviews with key executives.

Chinese Business Etiquette - A guide to protocol, manners, and culture in the People's Republic Of China, Seligman, Scott D. (1999) Warner Books Inc. (Contact: 1271 Avenue of the Americas, Ney York, NY 10020 - http://www.warnerbooks.com)

The Cambridge History of China. Twitchett, Denis Crispin, Fairbank, John King. (1986). Cambridge University Press. (Contact: email directcustserve@cup.cam.ac.uk) This multi-volume collection sets forth dynasty by dynasty the main events and personages of the major periods from antiquity to the present. The work brings together the leading scholars of each period in an effort to objectively set forth a body of knowledge that bridges the chasms of time and distance. This is the “Bible” of Chinese History. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences has translated this work into Chinese.

China – A Macro History. Huang, Ray. (1997). New York: M.E. Sharp, Inc. (Contact: 80 Business Park Drive, Armonk, NY 10504) This book covers the whole sweep of Chinese history and makes comparative references to Western history. Through interpretation and vivid anecdotes, it explains the present Chinese reforms as the culmination of a commercialization trend that has broken down the old peasant society and brought China into the mainstream of world history.

1421 The Year China Discovered America. Menzies, Gavin. (2002). New York: Harper Collins Publishers, Inc. (Contact: 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022) This retired Royal Navy submarine captain undertakes a forensic study to document the last of seven world wide ocean voyages by the Ming Dynasty eunich ZhengHe in 1421. The hypothesis is that the Chinese treasure fleets roamed the world’s ocean well before Europe’s Age of Discovery traveled around the Cape of Good Hope and the Straits of Magellan.

A Short History of Shanghai. Pott, F.L. Hawks. (1928). Singapore: Kelly & Walsh, Limited. A detailed description of the growth and development of the international settlement – Shanghai.

Chinese Roundabout-Essays in History and Culture. Spence, Jonathan D. (1992). USA: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. (Contact: 500 Fifth Ave., New York, NY. 10110) Spence’s collection of essays on selected themes such as opium, food, medicine and taxes is an adventurous tour of the value system and mindset of ancient and modern Chinese history and culture. His look into the essece of the Chinese mind and culture are nothing short of pure enjoyment and genius.

Understanding China. Starr, John Bryan. (1998). Britain: Profile Books Ltd. (Contact: 62 Queen Anne Street, London, L1M 9LA) Through detailed research on the changes in China's politics, military history, society, culture and human rights policy, Starr analyzes the evolution of China into the twenty-first century.

The Search for Modern China. Spence, Jonathan. (1990). London: Century Hutchinson Ltd. (Contact: 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SW1V 2SA) Spence tells us the story of four centuries in China's history from the Ming Dynasty to the early years of the People’s Republic of China. After more than 30 years of research and reflection in the field, Spence has finally revealed to us the truth through this powerful narrative.

RiverTown: Two Years on the Yangtze. Hessler, Peter. (2002). Perennial (Harper Collins). A powerful memoir of a young American teacher in the Peace Corps living in the small Chinese city of Fuling on the Yangtze river in the years just before the city is flooded by the Three Gorges Dam and the author’s experience navigating life in inland China as waves of cultural and social upheaval begin the break on the shores of Fuling. (includes maps).

Iron and Silk. Salzman, Mark. (1987). (Vintage Departures. USA: Vintage Books.) Salzman captures post-cultural revolution China through his adventures as a young American English teacher in China and his shifu-tudi (master-student) relationship with China's foremost martial arts teacher.

Chinese Central Asia: An Account of Travels in Northern Kashmir and Chinese Turkestan. (1986 reprinted). Skrine, C.P. Oxford University Press. Sir Claremont Skrine was British Consul General at Kasgar during 1922-1924. His district covered 460,000 square miles of western Xinjiang across the Pamirs and south of the Karakorum Range to India. Through touring, exploring and mapping China, they acquired a vast knowledge of the diverse people, their art, their lifestyles, their folklore and customs. (Photographs included).

The Silk Road: Trade, Travel, War and Faith. Whitfield, Susan. (2004). British Library. (Contact: 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB) This catalogues a major exhibition at the British Library comprising a wide range of different artistic styles and iconography illustrating the Silk Road history. This exhibition is unprecedented in that it brings together the efforts of leading scholars from around the world. Particular sections feature a large part of Aurel Stein's collections of manuscripts, paintings and artifacts covering secular and religious materials from many cultures and languages.

The River at the Center of the World – A Journey Up the Yangtze, and Back in Chinese Time. Winchester, Simon. (1996). USA: Penguin Books. (Contact: 375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014) Winchester paints an unforgettable picture in his 3900 mile journey up the Yangtze. Across highland plains, through ice-covered mountain ranges and into jungles, he experiences how it strengthens China’s link to the outside world and how history has been made along these banks.

The WorstDesert on Earth-Crossing the Taklamakan. Blackmore, Charles. (1995). London: John Murray Publishers Ltd. (Contact: 50 Albemarle Steet, London W1X 4BD) With thirty camels and a party of British, Chinese and Uyghurs, Blackmore set out to cross the Taklamakan Desert, a distance of 780 miles from west to east. For 59 days the party overcame sickness, injury and extremes of temperature in the wasteland of no life or water. This book depicts the excitement of the discovery of one of the lost cities of the Taklamakan that had been buried for centuries beneath the desert sand.