339
As Spence and other students of history are well aware, circumstances in later years forced the Empress Dowager to implement even more radical reform measures than the ones her nephew the Emperor tried to put in place. But those came too late to save the dynasty.
FRANK CHING
Wong Siu-Lun, Emigrant Entrepreneurs Shanghai Industrialists in Hong Kong: Oxford University Press, 1988. xii+244pp. Bibliography. Index
The role of the Shanghai industrialists in the post-War development of Hong Kong is a tale often told. A comprehensive, authoritative and readable book on this subject would be a welcome addition to those interested in modern Hong Kong history. Unfortunately, Professor Wong's book does not justify such a welcome.
This book is the result of research performed by the author over a period of ten years. His objective is to provide a detailed account of (the Shanghainese group's) industrial accomplishments to fill a gap in our knowledge about the process of industrialization in Hong Kong, which he hoped would 'help to answer two theoretical questions. First, why do people with common regional origins often congregate in particular economic spheres? Second, what are the distinctive features of Chinese industrial entrepreneurship?' His research was based on his B.Litt. thesis at Oxford, conducted in 1975, and was supplemented by interviews conducted after his return to Hong Kong. However, it was not until 1985 that he was able to undertake a thorough revision, resulting in the publication of this manuscript.
As a sociological study, this book was probably destined not to appeal to a businessman such as me. In any case, I found this book to be extremely dry, one of the dangers of releasing to the general public work originally done for an academic audience. There were and are a number of colourful characters among the Shanghai textile industrialists, but little of this is reflected in this book; there is no sauce to go with the meat. Names of individuals are sometimes disguised and textile mills are numbered; suitable perhaps for an academic thesis, but not for a more general audience.
339
As Spence and other students of history are well aware, circumstances in later years forced the Empress Dowager to implement even more radical reform measures than the ones her nephew the Emperor tried to put in place. But those came too late to save the dynasty.
FRANK CHING
Wong Siu-Lun, Emigrant Entrepreneurs Shanghai Industrialists in Hong Kong: Oxford University press, 1988. xii+244pp. Bibliography. Index
The role of the Shanghai industrialists in the post-War development of Hong Kong is a tale often told. A comprehensive, authoritative and readable book on this subject would be a welcome addition to those interested in modern Hong Kong history. Unfortunately, Professor Wong's book does not justify such a welcome.
This book is the result of research performed by the author over a period of ten years. His objective is to provide a detailed account of (the Shanghainese group's) industrial accomplishments to fill a gap in our knowledge about the process of industrialization in Hong Kong' which he hoped would 'help to answer two theoretical questions. First, why do people with common regional origins often congregate in particular economic spheres? Second, what are the distinctive features of Chinese industrial entrepreneurship?' His research was based on his B. Litt. thesis at Oxford, conducted in 1975, and was supplemented by interviews conducted after his return to Hong Kong. However, it was not until 1985 that he was able to undertake a thorough revision, resulting in the publication of this manuscript.
As a sociological study, this book was probably destined not to appeal to a businessman such as me. In any case, I found this book to be extremely dry, one of the dangers of releasing to the general public work originally done for an academic audience. There were and are a number of colourful characters among the Shanghai textile industrialists, but little of this is reflected in this book; there is no sauce to go with the meat. Names of individuals are sometimes disguised and textile mills are numbered; suitable perhaps for an academic thesis, but not for a more general audience.
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