The funeral of Mr. Wang: life, death, and ghosts in urbanizing China.

The first document is a book review of "The Funeral of Mr. Wang" by Andrew B. Kipnis. The book explores the funeral rituals and cultures in urban China and their connection to modernization, urbanization, and marketization. It examines the complex processes involved in organizing a funeral, including navigating political, economic, and social factors. The book also discusses the spatial relations and place-making underlying death rituals, the trend towards smaller funerals, and the social meanings of money in the funerary economy. The reviewer, while not an anthropologist, finds the book to be a valuable account of urban transformation in China, but raises concerns about the author's analysis of state-society relations. The second document is a book review of "Rivers of Iron: Railroads and Chinese Power in Southeast Asia" by David Lampton, Selina Ho, and Cheng Chwee Kuik. The book examines China's investments in Southeast Asia, specifically focusing on Chinese infrastructure development, particularly railroads, in seven Southeast Asian nations. The authors analyze the political power dynamics involved in these investments and argue that Chinese railroads offer Southeast Asian nations access to the global economy and opportunities for urbanization and development. The book highlights the multilateral nature of power in this context and emphasizes the economic benefits and potential leverage that these infrastructure projects provide for Southeast Asian nations. [Extracted from the article]