China Books Review is a digital magazine on all things China and bookish. We are a literary review for all general readers interested in China and the greater Sinophone world (including Taiwan and the Chinese diaspora), publishing reviews, essays, excerpts, profiles and book lists, as well as a monthly podcast and occasional videos of book talks. We also maintain dynamic lists of recent, upcoming and bestselling China books, alongside editors’ picks from the pack. We are published by Asia Society’s Center on U.S.-China Relations and The Wire China; please read our opening letter for more context.
We were founded in 2023 by Orville Schell, a veteran China author, and David Barboza, a Pulitzer-prize winning journalist. Our editor is Alec Ash, an author of multiple books on China and former editor at The Los Angeles Review of Books, with associate editor Alexander Boyd, formerly of China Digital Times, and assistant editor Taili Ni. The site was designed by Ben Shmulevitch, with illustrations by Ellie Foreman-Peck. In 2024 we won a Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) award for “Excellence in Opinion Writing.”
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FAQ
How often do you publish?
We are a biweekly publication, with features (reviews, essays, excerpts, profiles) dropping on Thursdays, and columns (book lists, archive picks, podcasts, book talks) on Tuesdays. Every four articles there is a new cover story and newsletter mail-out, constituting a new “issue.” We take weeks off occasionally, for Christmas and summer.
What’s the best way to follow you?
Bookmark our homepage to see new articles in all their glory, and dynamic updates to our lists of upcoming, recent and bestselling books on and from China. Follow our X, Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky for new posts and event listings, or plug into our RSS feed. Best of all, sign up for our biweekly newsletter for the full round-up, so as to not miss a beat.
How do you decide which books to cover?
We endeavor to list all new China books, broadly conceived, on our comprehensive book listings. Feature articles (reviews, essays, excerpts, curated lists) then selectively cover certain books, with a view to publishing content that adds original value to the conversation around China and the greater Sinophone world, including lesser-known topics or angles. We aspire to highlight diverse voices, including Chinese-language books.
What do you mean by ‘China’?
Our remit is broad, including not just the People’s Republic of China but also the greater Sinophone world, including Taiwan and the Chinese diaspora. Our definition of a “China book” is any English-language book whose subject or setting is China or the Sinophone world, including works translated from Chinese. By featuring or listing a work, we make no political claims about the territory it is about or from.
How do you avoid favoritism?
We avoid publishing reviews by contributors with too close a personal connection to the author, or who have otherwise promoted their book. Please see our standards for more detail. Selections of which books to cover in feature articles are made solely with interest for the reader in mind. All contributors to the Review have full independence to voice their opinion of works, and we encourage both credit and criticism where due.
Do you make money?
No. We are a non-profit endeavor, and all content on the website is free to access. We make no money from advertisements or publishers, nor from affiliate commissions from book links. We sometimes use our announcement box (in the footer) to point readers to The Wire China, our sister site that does charge for access, but we are an independent outlet.
How are you funded?
We are jointly funded by Asia Society’s Center on U.S.-China Relations, a non-profit dedicated to promoting an open and collaborative relationship between the United States and China, and The Wire Digital Inc., a New York-based news and data startup that publishes The Wire China and runs WireScreen, a software analytics platform providing data on Chinese companies and individuals.
Where are you based?
We publish out of Asia Society’s headquarters in New York, with a roster of diverse contributors based all over the world, including many in China and other parts of Asia.
How can I get in touch?
Feel free to contact us, or see how to submit. ∎