ARTICLES
TWO SIDES OF A MOUNTAIN: JOURNAL OF DAOIST STUDIES
The current (2012) issue of the Journal of Daoist Studies has a piece by me on the recent history of rebuilding Maoshan, an important Daoist mountain in Jiangsu province. Above is a picture of the nuns discussed in the article. The article is behind a paywall but contact me if you are inte
THE WUKAN EFFECT: DESTABILIZING CHINA?
The recent uprising in Wukan is often seen as a sign of regime instability. But could it be othewise? Here’s a piece on this question in the New York Review.
CHINA GETS RELIGION!
Despite continuing repression, religious life in China continues to expand and even flourish. In this essay in the New York Review of Books, I look at some excellent books describing this phenomenon. Unfortunately you might need a password to read it.
U.S. CULTURAL DIPLOMACY IN CHINA
Here's a modest piece on why the U.S. does or doesn't do more cultural diplomacy in China.
ITALIAN EDITION: MOSQUE IN MONACO
Here’s the dipsy-doodly cover of the just-released Italian edition of A Mosque in Munich. It was my ignorance, but I didn’t know that “Munich” in Italian is (always/sometimes?) Monaco. For a moment, I thought Grace Kelly had been inserted into the book…Actually the book
ARE CHINA’S RULERS GETTING RELIGION?
Despite crackdowns, there are signs that China’s leaders are interested in fostering religious life. In this blogpost for the New York Review, I look at some of the recent signs.
EUROPE’S UNDERESTIMATED ISLAMISTS MEQ FALL 2011 ESSAY
The current issue of Middle Eastern Quarterly has this essay by me on how Europe’s Islamists became so strong and how, a decade after 911, we still haven’t learned from our past lessons.
UNE MOSQUEE A MUNICH
A Mosque in Munich is now out in French, following editions in German and Indonesian. Thanks to my French publishers, JC Lattes, for their help.
DENG’S HEYDAY
Thanks to Liu Kin Ming at the Hong Kong Economic Journal, I had the chance to write about my first trip to China--in 1984--and what it was like then.
OPEN THE ARCHIVES
As the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 anniversary approaches, we still have little idea just how extensive western governments' collusion with Islamists has been over the past few decades.
LIAO YIWU INTERVIEW IN THE NEW YORK REVIEW
I believe this interview in the New York Review is the first interview with Chinese author Liao Yiwu since he fled into exile to Berlin last month.
ON THE PARTY CIRCUIT, AND UPSETTING THE PARTY
I recently had the opportunity to profile Chan Koonchung (aka Chen Guanzhong), the Hong Kong author who wrote a dystopian novel that's recently been published in English as "The Fat Years."