Business Week said: "An intriguing and myth - shattering study of the region's powerbrokers...[and] a richly reported study of power and stunted economics development." ~~~ Agreed !!!
The Washington Times mentioned: "A superb and thoughtful book that deserves a broader range of readers than the serious policy wonks, economics fans, and Asia hands likley to reach for it reflexively." ~~~ Just could not agreed more...
My favourite Wall Street Journal Asia rated it as "A Blast".... and finally, The Times (London) classified the said book as "A first-class study... The product of an original, inquiring mind."...
Now my turn to say something about this book.... LOL. One word to sum it up ~~~ "Awesome"! This is a real nice book with plenty of facts and lessons to ponder (whether you are a student, a politician, an economist or a rubbish like me, LOL) about... My first glance on this book was actually on a Chinese version. In fact, I found it hard to get the English version eventually (Chinese version? It is everywhere !!! LOL). Perhaps, this book attracts more Chinese (Chinese education?) readers since they are kind of familiar with "Chinese God Fathers", LOL.
Well... something crossed my mind after finished the book ~~~ It is rather hard to believe that the author has not been taken to court for his great stuff... LOL. Here are some entertaining excerpts to suport my point:
"HK and Singapore perform a simple economic trick: they arbitrage the relative economic inefficiency of their hinterlands."
"...T.J.S. George's observation that 'he detected in Lee the insecurity of a man alienated from his Chinese morrings, a man who, because he does not quite belong anywhere, has had to remake Singapore in his own image to compensate for his own alienation'."
"Asian godfathers are not the product of social mobility. The notion that they are, however, is part and parcel of the tycoons' self-image. It is important to their personal sense of pride and it is critical to the maintenance of authoritarian political structures and unfree markets in the region."
As a summary... perhaps most of us familiar with most of the stories (rumors?) written by the author. But, an outstanding written job plus detail analysis certainly add up extra points to the collection of stories (rumors? LOL). I personally like it so much that I would rate it as high as 9 out of 10. A deduction of -1 was purely based on the facts that the collections of stories might not be accurate 100%.... putting it aside, this is a must read book ! Simply awesome....
Here are some other nice excerpts from the book:
People are trapped in history and history is trapped in them.
When a man tells you that he got rich through hard work, ask him:"Whose?" ~ Don Marquis
The good thing about Confucianism is it makes Asian people willing to suffer pain... ~ Hong Kong tycoon Ronnie Chan
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