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Shanghai Immortal. By A. Y. Chao. Oct. 2023. 352p. Hodderscape, $28.99 (9781399717410). Half hulijing, half vampire, and full of sass, Jing readily flaunts the social mores of 1930s Shanghai and [...]

Majority. By Abby Goldsmith. Sept. 2023. 590p. Podium, paper, $18.99 (9781039442726); e-book (9781039442733) An eidetic mind reader who absorbs knowledge through memories, Thomas regularly achieves feats requiring preternatural mental prowess: [...]

The Saint of Bright Doors. By Vajra Chandrasekera. July 2023.368p. Tor.com, $27.99 (9781250847386); e-book (9781250847393). Fetter is enmeshed in a cycle of violence as his mother severs his shadow from [...]

We'd mobilize to block the United States, too.'" That binary worldview may partly explain why Xi thinks Biden is surrounding China with groups such as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, which includes Australia, India, Japan, and the United States. Features JOE BIDEN HAS HAD MORE FACE TIME with Chinese leaders than any other U.S. president. For Biden's first year in office, Xi's aides saw little benefit in having their president talk with his U.S. counterpart in person - especially if there was a risk of Xi losing face in the eyes of his audience back home. [Extracted from the article]

The behind-the-scenes story of how Kofi Annan and the Americans shaped the accord that averted a war over Baghdad. Now, can the pact hold? Kofi Annan had heard stories about [...]

Ever since Operation Desert Storm, standoffs with Saddam Hussein have played out with a kind of unthreatening predictability. He huffs and puffs; the United States lobs a few cruise missiles [...]

At a windswept grave outside Shanghai, villagers still gossip about the day D.H. Tung came home. In 1990, more than four decades after the future leader of Hong Kong sailed [...]

IF THERE WAS A SINGLE moment when Madeleine Albright took her place in the Old Boys' Club, it came in March 1998. She was throwing a party for the new [...]

A LIGTHOUSE KEEPER ON A LONELY coastal headland may have been the only civilian witness to the event. Shortly after midnight, at his post on Taiwan's northeastern tip, Su Teh-tsun [...]

Byline: Melinda Liu Pastor Bob Fu knows about life on the run. Back in 1996, when he and his wife lived in Beijing, they spent two months behind bars because [...]

Each day in Iraq, bodyguards knock on the front doors of more than a half-dozen homes. Then they announce: 'You'll have a guest tonight.' They allow the startled residents a [...]

Byline: Melinda Liu A top diplomat on a tough assignment. Wang Yi is urbane, multilingual, pragmatic, and, when needed, a wily negotiator. In short: he is everything a top diplomat [...]

Byline: Melinda Liu Car ownership is out of control. So is pollution. 'Killer smog' has overtaken the Chinese capital. Authorities blamed the shockingly high pollution levels--the worst since records began [...]

Last week's summit, dominated by the debate on human rights, demonstrates just how far apart Washington and Beijing remain on key issues IT BEGAN, AS POSTSUMMIT PRESS conferences are apt [...]

At next week's summit, the Chinese president is determined to make America love him JIANG ZEMIN IS CURSED BY HIS cue cards. Under their spell he sounds like the Soviet-trained [...]

The early line on Albright: a secretary with great style, less substance. Now the Mideast looms. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is known for meetings as long and [...]

BY THE TIME THE flight to Hong Kong had reached 30,000 feet, Jerry Stuchiner's right eye bad stopped its nervous twitching. The 45-year-old officer for the Immigration and Naturalization Service [...]

The article focuses on the blind Chinese human rights lawyer and political dissident Chen Guangcheng. Topics include Chen's escape from house arrest to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, China, the involvement of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in negotiations for his relocation to the U.S., and Chen's political activities in China.

The article discusses the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao to the U.S. and China's intentions for it. Hu is profiled regarding his political ambitions and enigmatic nature. The history of the Hu clan is discussed. The author opines regarding the purpose of Hu's visit and whether substantive issues will be addressed or resolved.

The article discusses the emerging influence of China in various areas including security, international trade, and global financial markets. China played a pivotal role in creating the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and has helped establish a $120 billion regional reserve fund for Asian nations. China is pushing to make the yuan a rival to the U.S. dollar as a trading currency.

Byline: Melinda Liu And how holograms can help. among china's greatest art treasures are the Buddhist caves near Dunhuang, an oasis on the fabled Silk Road that once linked China [...]

The article discusses China's infusion of capital into the economy to reduce the unrest and unease of its people. Using the example of Tang Yongming who murdered U.S. citizen Todd Bachman at Beijing's Drum Tower at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the article describes China's economic pressures, and how they produce anxiety within the country's population. The author details Tang's failures and the resultant depression that drove him to commit the murder.

This article examines the way in which Chinese citizens who have attended school in Occidental nations have not adopted a pro-Western attitude. The author argues that whereas the belief was that Chinese who studied in Europe or the U.S. would tend to be westernized, they are actually highly jingoistic. Reasons offered for this by the author include the ignorance of Westerners and feelings of home-sickness. Also discussed is the tendency of Chinese who have studied abroad to hold high political positions.

This article discusses the Chinese government response to an earthquake in Sichuan, China. It notes visits to the effected areas by Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and President Hu Jintao. It describes the relief efforts coordinated by the Chinese government, which made a point of sending aid to the Aba Prefecture, which has a significant ethnic Tibetan minority.

This article presents a series of photographs and a brief analysis of the impact that the 2008 Cyclone Nargis had on the country of Burma. The article discusses efforts by the Burmese government to continue with a referendum on a proposed constitution that would confirm military rule in the country. It also notes that natural disasters are frequently associated with regime changes.

The article discusses the Chinese government's reaction to internal protests and conflict in the months leading up to the 2008 summer Olympics in Beijing, China. Human rights activists criticize China for refusing to help stop genocide in Darfur, Sudan. It is suggested that China's forceful suppression of demonstrations in Tibet, China is due to the Chinese government's desire to extinguish any problematic unrest before the Olympics. China's foreign relations are strained.

The article discusses the growing unrest between Tibet and the Chinese government, noting the March 2008 demonstrations for a free Tibet and the virulent reaction of Chinese officials. The Dalai Lama's emphasis on nonviolent protest is challenged by some younger Tibetans. Tibetan demonstrators and Buddhist monks use the Internet to communicate with one another. The results of economic development in Tibet include increased commodity prices.

An essay is presented on the changes that have taken place in China from the 1970s to 2008, with a particular focus on China and East Asia in the 1980s. The author recalls managing "Newsweek" magazine's bureau in Beijing, China, covering the 1980 trial of the Gang of Four and the situation under Chinese Communist leader Deng Xiaoping, with a focus on his economic reforms. Also discussed is the author's account of the violence in Tiananmen Square and China's economic and cultural developments.

The article reports the U.S. military's success in forging ties with tribal sheiks around Ramadi, Iraq, and considers whether similar local alliances against insurgents could be formed in other parts of the country. The sheiks are allying with the Americans to try to quell the sectarian violence being fomented by al Qaeda and other insurgents, both Sunni and Shi'ite.

This article discusses the relationship between North Korea and the U.S before and after North Korea's nuclear test. The authors compare the assumed character and mindset of North Korean President Kim Jong Il with that of German Kaiser Wilhelm before World War I. The article mentions a shared Napoleon complex and suggests that derogatory comments made by U.S. President George W. Bush in 2002 might still be remembered.

This article discusses the popularity of the "World of Warcraft" role-playing video game. Over seven million people worldwide play "World of Warcraft," led by player "guilds" who work together to complete levels of the game. The popularity of online video games is also discussed, especially role-playing video games.

Focuses on the insurgency in Iraq, which includes a vast network of infiltrators, spies and recruiters. Fears of U.S. intelligence officials that Iraq's security services have hundreds of so-called ghost soldiers who are working for the insurgency; Discovery of Iraqi police officers with terrorist connections, according to Iraqi officials in Baghdad; Concerns over moles from Saddam Hussein's elite intelligence corps, the Mukhabarat; The Baghdad government's web of agents and informants; Implications of the proliferation of new insurgents; How counterinsurgency experts are alarmed by how fast the insurgents' tactics can evolve; Suggestion that Iraq is producing a new corps of master terrorists.

Reports on changes and growth in China. How the country manufactures two thirds of the world's copiers, microwave ovens, DVD players, and shoes; Amount of goods Wal-Mart imported from China to sell in their stores; China as the second-largest holder of foreign-exchange reserves; The unique culture of China; How China's growth rate is the fastest for a major economy in recorded history; Criticism China's economic growth is receiving; Involvement of the Chinese government.

The article suggest that the fall of the U.S. dollar is stoking fears of a global crisis. The dollar has been declining steadily against many foreign currencies, but for most Americans, the subject of the dollar--its value on foreign-exchange markets--is a yawner. A depreciating dollar makes foreign vacations more expensive, puts pressure on the prices of imported cars and shoes and (the good part) improves the global competitiveness of U.S. manufacturers. Normally, these matters aren't high on our "must know" list. But now is not normal. The significance of the dropping dollar is that it's actually a symptom of a larger and more troubling development. For 15 years the American economy has been the engine for the world economy through ever-increasing trade and current-account deficits. The trouble is that there are now more dollars than foreigners want to hold. If there's a glut of anything--apples, computer chips, Beanie Babies--prices go down. So when surplus dollars are sold for euros, yen or pounds, then the dollar drops in value against those currencies.

Reports on the loss of scared relics from under the sands of the Middle East. How the war in Iraq has destroyed many archaeological dig sites; Looting and destruction of the sites which figure in Judaism, Christianity and the Muslim faiths; Why money is being diverted from digs in Israel; How looters in Iraq are wiping out fields of knowledge and cultural history; How the coalition forces in Iraq make it more difficult to preserve the past.

Offers a look at the shortage of armored Humvees that led to war casualties of United States and allied soldiers during the Iraq War of 2003 and 2004. Claim by soldiers that the U.S. government has failed to protect them with the best technology; Lack of tanks and body armor; Filing of a Freedom of Information Act request by Russ Kick for the release of photographs showing coffins returning to the United States from Iraq; Statement that a breakdown of casualty figures suggests that many U.S. deaths and wounds did not need to occur; Recommendation by the head of the U.S. Army Forces Command, General Larry Ellis, that more of the Stryker combat vehicles be put into the field; Attacks by insurgents in Iraq on the vulnerable soldiers; Cost of the military operations in Iraq.

Reports on efforts by the U.S. military and coalition forces to control the violence in Iraq. Details of attempts by Iranian mediators to persuade radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to end his uprising; Discussion of the continued violence in Fallujah; Claim that Iraq's reconstituted security forces appear to be disintegrating; Report that many Iraqis are angry about civilian deaths in the attack by U.S. Marines on Fallujah; Comment by Lt. Col. Gary Volesky on the challenges of controlling the uprising in Sadr City; Account of how many ordinary Iraqis appear to be turning on American troops.

Reports on fighting between U.S. occupying forces and Sunni and Shiite militants in Iraq, and the debate over how to deal with radical Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Comparison between the attacks on Americans and the Palestinian intifada; Observation that the reluctance among Coalition Provisional Authority officials to crack down on al-Sadr, who is inciting violent uprisings against coalition troops, arises from the conflict between the dual goals of maintaining order and winning hearts and minds; Background on al-Sadr and his role in inciting violence; Details of the investigation into al-Sadr's role in the killing of moderate Shiite cleric Abel Majid al-Khoei; Claim that the Iraqi grand ayatollahs oppose al-Sadr, and are angry about his recent trip to Iran; Speculation about why the CPA has so far failed to stop al-Sadr.

Examines the U.S.-led occupation in Iraq. Attitudes of the U.S. military and the President George W. Bush administration; Incident in Fallujah where U.S. security personnel were murdered and mutilated; View that Iraq has become a strategic battleground in the war on terror; Iraqi reactions to the U.S. military presence; Outlook for the plan to hand over security to Iraqis; Challenges of bringing the killers in Fallujah to justice; The increased attacks on U.S. troops and civilians; Overview of the violence; How the growing threat to civilians has stalled reconstruction; Impact of the insurgency on the U.S. military; Question of who the insurgents are.

Discusses the current state of Iraq a year after the war started. Comments by a friend of the author who lives in Iraq on how the country is now compared to then; Experience of the author in Iraq when the war started; Progress of the rebuilding of Iraq, including the cost of infra structure projects; Feelings of other Iraqis on the condition of their country a year after the war started.

Reports the brutality of the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq. Information from tapes, documents, and other Baath Party papers offering evidence of the ways Saddam ruled by torture and terror; Purpose of Iraqi agencies, including the Iraqi Intelligence Service and the Special Security Organization; Description of life in the police state, where people spied on each other or were detained and interrogated in prisons; Details of the grandeur of the Hussein palaces, including what was found in the villa of his son Uday.