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While most ethnic Chinese in northern Thailand are Thai citizens now, their everyday lives are a site where we can witness the political power entanglement of China, Taiwan and Thailand. With this in mind, this paper aims to look into the relationship between global China and overseas Chinese from the perspective of the ethnic Chinese in the northern borderlands of Thailand. The purpose is not just to disclose the multiplicity of global China in people's everyday lives, but also to complicate the picture of overseas Chinese as portrayed in top-down grand narratives about global China. I argue that the ongoing re-Sinicization in South-East Asia and the territorial geopolitics among China, Taiwan and Thailand have opened a conceptual space for the ethnic Chinese in northern Thailand to flexibly articulate themselves within the changing geopolitical economy. I use tea production and related Chinese-language education programmes, two separate but intertwined cases, to address these issues. By looking beyond the competition, conflict and dilemmas between China and Taiwan, I argue that Taiwan's previous engagement with agricultural transfer to Thailand and the rooting of pro-Taiwan identity and discourse in language education have paradoxically paved a way for China to stretch its influence into the everyday lives of the Chinese communities in the northern Thai borderlands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Igor Iwo Chabrowski's book, "Ruling the Stage: Social and Cultural History of Opera in Sichuan from the Qing to the People's Republic of China," provides a comprehensive examination of traditional Chinese opera in Sichuan from the late Qing dynasty to the Communist era. The book draws on extensive archival research to explore the social and cultural significance of opera in the region. It highlights the role of opera in constructing a sense of history and community, as well as its economic and religious impact. The book also examines the institutionalization and commercialization of opera, the relationship between opera and power, and the efforts of cultural reformists in different periods. While the book lacks a focus on the performative aspects of opera, it offers valuable insights and case studies that contribute to a deeper understanding of the subject. [Extracted from the article]

Jennifer Wong's book, "Identity, Home and Writing Elsewhere in Contemporary Chinese Diaspora Poetry," explores the themes of identity, home, and diaspora in the works of a diverse group of Chinese diaspora poets. Wong's project brings together poets who may not typically be considered a coherent community, but she skillfully connects their works through her analysis of identity, home, and writing elsewhere. The book includes an introduction that discusses these concepts, a field report on Asian American and Chinese diaspora poetry scenes, interviews with poets, and chapters dedicated to individual poets and poets from the UK and Hong Kong. Wong acknowledges the complexities of labeling and identity, recognizing that poets often resist categorization. The book highlights the theme of home as a central element in the poets' works, demonstrating the significance of home in the experience of writing in diaspora. The poets' exploration of home reflects both their Chinese heritage and their diasporic experiences, evoking classical themes of travel and nostalgia in Chinese poetry. Overall, Wong's book offers valuable insights into the diverse and complex world of contemporary Chinese diaspora poetry. [Extracted from the article]

P hilip A ndrews -S peed is a senior principal fellow at the Energy Studies Institute of the National University of Singapore and a senior research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. S cott E. S imon is professor in the School of Sociological and Anthropological Studies, Ottawa. S igrid S chmalzer is professor of history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and author of I Red Revolution, Green Revolution: Scientific Farming in Socialist China i (University of Chicago Press, 2016). [Extracted from the article]

Museums established at local level, in the I qiaoxiang i (the sending lands of Overseas Chinese), where diasporic museums were first established, used "heritagisation" and diasporic resources and sentiments "for the purpose of city branding and urban upgrading" (p. 57). Symbolic museums present "an authoritative representation of Chinese diasporas as a unified and China-oriented entity that has acted as a unique bridge between China and the world." It is the latter sort that this deeply original, clearly written and richly researched interdisciplinary study describes and analyses, with China's officially sponsored and funded "Overseas Chinese museums" and its locally based bottom-up museums as its focus. [Extracted from the article]

Chinese communities resident in Mexico and Cuba face a common problem: their dealings with business partners in China are perceived as a threat to national interests. In Mexico this concern emanates from manufacturers unable to compete with Chinese imports, and is evident in antagonistic news media and acts of hostility against Chinese businesses. In Cuba it stems from the state's stewardship over economic sovereignty, and is evident in efforts to assimilate Havana's Chinatown and its entrenched informal sector into a centralized scheme of commercial regulation. Interviews with policy makers, local officials and Chinese entrepreneurs indicate that the “rationalization” of Chinese ethnic allegiances for the greater public good is a critical step towards alleviating tensions. I conclude that both countries can leverage benefits from overseas Chinese communities, but to do so they must support their entrepreneurial activities, harness their networks to promote targeted imports and exports, and develop more culturally sensitive regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]