Synopses & Reviews
In the last three decades China has experienced the largest population movement in human history. Millions have left behind homes to find work and new opportunities in the emerging mega-cities.
Through months of sustained interpersonal contact with migrant workers and factory owners Behzad Yaghmaian paints a unique portrait of a country experiencing the turmoil of rapid development. His close listening has produced an intimate look at the hopes, hardships, triumphs and tragedies of those behind the Chinese "economic dragon."
The Accidental Capitalist reveals the human reality behind China's rise to global-superpower status. Yaghmaian articulates the collective narrative of a people which will resonate with anyone living under capitalism and provide valuable material to students and scholars.
Review
"A modern Alexis de Tocqueville, the author lived among his subjects in Shenzen, ‘the heartbeat of the rising China, while scouring the metropolis for stories... Casting off polemics and opting instead to address China's development anecdotally, Yaghmaian crafts a moving portrait of the diverse individuals behind the ubiquitous label ‘Made in China.” - Publishers Weekly"This remarkable book paints intimate portraits of some of the faceless millions of migrant workers who have made China's economic miracle possible. Through their stories of hope and heartbreak, Yaghmaian takes readers beyond the statistics to show the revolutionary changes of the last generation. From his grungy apartment in the deliciously named Beautiful Rose Garden housing complex, Yaghmaian introduces us to a fascinating cast of characters: the village girl who moves to the big city with dreams of becoming a 'white color worker,' and the factory boss who admits to exploiting his workers and using child labor to make Spiderman bubble-bath for American markets." - Ivan Watson, CNN Foreign Correspondent
"Unskilled migrants have been central to China's rapid industrialisation, but their life stories and voices have been missing from previous accounts of that process. Behzad Yaghmaian fills that gap in this new account of China's epic transformation, told through the personal biographies of men and women working in factories and construction sites. A fascinating, moving and highly readable book." - Jeff Crisp, Head, Policy Development and Evaluation Services, UNHCR
"Like Ian Johnson's Wild Grasses or Leslie Chang's Factory Girls, The Accidental Capitalist takes us to the epicenter of China's world-changing transition through a series of portraits of the men and women who make that change possible. Living among them, Yaghmaian trains his political economist's eye on China's throes of export-led commercial expansion ... He vividly conveys his acquaintances' sense of excitement and even optimism." - Professor James Millward, History, Georgetown University
Synopsis
'Baghdad Bulletin takes us where mainstream news accounts do not go. Disrupting the easy cliches that dominate US journalism, Enders blows away the media fog of war.' Norman Soloman
About the Author
Sebastian Dullien is a Professor of International Economics at HTW Berlin - University of Applied Sciences. He is Senior Fellow of the American Institute for Contemporary German Studies (AICGS) at the Johns Hopkins University. Hansjorg Herr is a Professor at the Berlin School of Economics. He is the author of one of Germany’s leading economics text books. Christian Kellermann is the Director of the Nordic Office of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) in Stockholm. Before joining the FES, he worked as a financial market analyst in Frankfurt and New York.
Table of Contents
History Timeline
Maps
Introduction: The Greatest Migration
BOOK I:
Tenants of Li Family, The Beautiful Rose Garden, The Li Family Village, The Portrait of Mao, Grandpa, The Communists Buried their Soldiers, The Great Famine, The Decorator's Fortune, The Scent of Fresh Grass
BOOK II:
Migrant Girls' Long March, Toy Factory Girls, I Want to See the World, The Great Flood, Bean Curds, I Will Be My Own Boss, Red Lanterns on the Mountain, A White Color Worker
BOOK III:
The Accidental Capitalist, Zhao Gang: The Declining Export-Processing Industries, Child Labor, Ancestor's Tomb, Lujiang
Leaving for Shenzhen, Arise, You Prisoners of Starvation
BOOK IV:
A Man for All Seasons, Yue Haitao: Saving the World in the New China, Leaving Qingdao, Running to Die, Taking Side, Own a Piece of America, The Bastille Day
Conclusions
Index