Enlight21

Evan Osnos has portrayed, explained and poked fun at this the new China better than any other writer from the West or the East. In “Age of Ambition,” Osnos takes his reporting a step further, illuminating what he calls China’s Gilded Age, its appetites, challenges and dilemmas, in a way few have done.

Two themes drive this compelling and accessible investigation of the modern Middle Kingdom. The first is hunger. China is living through “a ravenous era,” Osnos declares early in the book. And it’s a hunger not just for meat — the consumption of which has increased sixfold since the 1970s. After 40 years of dead-end Maoism, Chinese are combing the globe for commodities, wealth, experiences and respect. The second theme is the chase. “All over China people were embarking on journeys, joining the largest migration in human history,” Osnos writes, and he doesn’t mean that just in physical terms. He peppers the book with tales of characters making spiritual, economic, emotional and philosophical expeditions that have transformed their lives and the world as we know it. –from The Washington Post

Questions to Ponder:

1. What do you think of the New China as depicted by Osnos?
2. A main theme of this book is that China has made tremendous progress economically in a very short span of time—so spectacular has this ascent been  that many Chinese are reeling from the prospect of unlimited opportunities for attaining untold wealth.  However, Osnos makes clear that China is still in the grip of a draconian authoritarian government.  What are your thoughts regarding this state of affairs?
3. Which character(s)’ story or stories did you find most interesting?
4. Your general thoughts?