Bui Jones Books

What does Xi Jinping share with Mao Zedong? Why is Confucius still central to a communist state? What really happened in Tiananmen Square - and why is it still a taboo? In this accessible and politically astute primer, acclaimed historian Jeffrey Wasserstrom tackles the questions many are afraid to ask about China. Drawing on decades of research and first-hand experience in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong, Wasserstrom offers clear, unflinching answers to topics often shrouded in cliche, censorship, or moral panic. From personality cults and protest movements to censorship, soft power, and trade wars, Everything You Wanted to Know About China (But Were Afraid to Ask) demystifies the People''s Republic without exoticising it - offering a vital starting point for understanding one of the most powerful and misunderstood countries in the world. Structured as a series of conversational questions and answers - edited from an extended dialogue and reframed around key themes in History, Politics, and Culture - this is a necessary book for anyone seeking to cut through the noise.

At the helm of X, bankrolling far-right lawsuits, and parroting white nationalist conspiracy theories to millions, Elon Musk is no longer a tech eccentric with odd politics - he's the public face of the MAGA counter-revolution. Alongside Trump and the digital culture warriors of the new right, Musk is acting as both financier and foot soldier, reshaping the online public sphere in the image of a paranoid, hyper-capitalist backlash. He's not just posting through it - he's helping lead it. In this urgent and razor-sharp essay, award-winning journalist Richard Cooke dissects the political descent of Elon Musk: from self-described moderate to reactionary provocateur, from self-mythologised innovator to conspiracy peddler and chaos agent. With forensic clarity, Cooke exposes the roots of Musk's transformation - the mythology of genius, the libertarian cult of disruption, and the tech elite's growing comfort with authoritarianism. Dark Star Rising investigates how the richest man alive came to dominate what was once the digital town square - and what it means when that square is turned into a plaything of the paranoid elite. As Cooke reveals, Musk's trajectory is not an anomaly but a warning: when billionaires cosplay as rebels and monopolise the means of communication, democracy itself hangs in the balance. Dark Star Rising is searing account of the political devolution of Elon Musk - and what it reveals about the tech elite's descent into far-right reaction.

Fifty years ago, when the longest and most unpopular war in American history finally ended, Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, was left traumatised by the conflict and cut off from the world. This was a cruel fate for a city that had in its short mercurial history blossomed on the back of US military spending and international trade. Boatloads of Vietnamese, fearing their future under the rule of the Communist party, took their chances on the seas, never imagining they would ever wish to return. And through the 1980s, not even the Saigonese could have imagined the city''s re-emergence as a rapidly growing financial powerhouse in the 21st century. But for the last three decades overseas Vietnamese of all ages have been flocking back to what has become one of the fastest growing cities in Southeast Asia. They''re not alone. Today Ho Chi Minh City, renamed in 1976 in honour of Vietnam''s founding father, is a pulsating and multicultural hub that is welcoming the world (yes, American investors included). Its powering economy and vibrant start-up culture are undoubtedly part of the attraction for Generations X, Y and Z. But more than anything, it''s the city''s age-old hospitality, its glorious food offerings and fun-loving social scene, and the seductive Saigonese way of life that wins everyone over. Even fans of its northern rival Hanoi can''t resist the lure of the southern hub, the writer of this collection included. In these 10 essays, Dublin-born Connla Stokes, who has spent a quarter of a century in Vietnam, describes a heaving city where locals and residents bask in the low-key wonder of their surroundings, and where food and drink, above everything else, brings one and all together, day after day, night after night. Follow Connla into the back alleys and side streets of a metropolis that, at first glance, never seems to catch its breath. Learn how to love the rainy season, why locals love to nhau (feasting and drinking for no particular purpose) and kill time in one of the city''s countless cafes. Discover the pleasure of slinking your way through a typical Saigonese neighbourhood or following a dimly lit staircase in a crumbling modernist apartment block to find a svelte speakeasy or rooftop taproom. And feel the heartache of falling for the heritage of yesteryear, which is slowly being razed to make way for modern developments in a city that many believe will soon be a megalopolis. But fear not, even though Ho Chi Minh City is already home to over 10 million people, and nearly as many motorbikes, you can still find oodles of ''old Saigon'' flavour - away from the glitzy rooftop bars, and shimmering high-rises, the city''s timeless charm endures and its residents'' love of life prevails. These poignant essays are a reminder that the time to go to it, and fall for it, is now.

The rise of Hong Kong is the story of a miraculous post-War boom, when Chinese refugees flocked to a small British colony, and, in less than 50 years, transformed it into one of the great financial centres of the world. The unravelling of Hong Kong, on the other hand, shatters the grand illusion of China ever having the intention of allowing democratic norms to take root inside its borders. Hong Kong''s people were subjects of the British Empire for more than a hundred years, and now seem destined to remain the subordinates of today''s greatest rising power. Although we have witnessed the end of the mass protests that rocked Hong Kong in 2019-20, the political struggle for Hong Kong continues to be one of the biggest challenges to China''s authoritarianism in 30 years. Activists who are passionately committed to defending the special qualities of a home they love continue to fight against Beijing''s crafty efforts to bring the city into its fold and erase its recent past. Jeffrey Wasserstrom, one of the world''s leading China specialists, draws on his many visits to the city, and knowledge of the history of repression and resistance, to help us understand the deep roots and the broad significance of the large protests that took place in Hong Kong five years go. The result is a riveting tale of tragedy but also heroism - one of the great David-versus- Goliath battles of our time, pitting determined street protesters against the intransigence of Xi Jinping, the most ambitious leader of China since the days of Mao.