The Dragon's Gift

Bucking the conventional wisdom that China's substantial increases in aid to the region are motivated by short-term commercial and strategic interests, Brautigam's lively and thoroughly documented account emphasizes that Chinese motivations are broader and more long term. * Nicolas Van de Walle, Foreign Affairs *
A timely [and] important book...fascinating. Book of the week. * Ian Birrell, The Independent *
Compelling * Rob Crilly, Irish Times *
[A] fascinating and comprehensive guide to China's growing influence in Africa... You are unlikely to find a more thorough, comprehensive and open-minded account of the subject. * Dan Glazebrook, Morning Star *
[A] richly detailed book... well-informed * Howard W. French, The National *
The Dragon's Gift, a new book by Deborah Brautigam, looks behind [the] media hype. It offers surprising insights and challenges us to take a new look at Africa's development...thoughtful and well-researched...the basis for a well-informed, interesting dialogue with Chinese actors. * The Huffington Post *
Any book claiming to tell the 'real story' sets its standards high, but this one succeeds admirably. For those interested in China-Africa relations, it enriches the field, defines new research standards and is constructively provocative. For those new to the subject, it is an essential text about a compelling, increasingly consequential relationship. * Daniel Large, The Broker *
This is an important addition to the already considerable literature on China-Africa. Policy makers and journalists should read it * Peter Wood, Asian Review of Books *
Brautigam's superb book, the fruit of decades of research and travel throughout Africa and China... this highly accessible and rigorous book may come to be viewed as a canonical text in the China-Africa development debate. * Sean Burges, International Affairs *
Brautigam successfully provides scholars of the ChinaAfrica relationship with a new analytical framework, information, and viewpoints...this highly recommended volume shows that Chinese are business-oriented developers and revolutionizes the concept that China is a hasty donor in Africa. * The China Quarterly *
The Dragons Gift will be for a long time the lodestone of informed discussion of how China and Chinese interact with Africa and Africans. * Barry Sautman, China Journal *
An incisive book...an excellent read * Suresh George, Regional Studies *
a superbly written and exquisitely researched book ... the value of the books contribution to a worthy debate is without question. * Jane Golley, Economic Record *
The Dragon's Gift is a path-breaking book, one that was urgently needed and one which deserves to be widely noticed and read. It not only provides an in-depth analysis of contemporary relations of China with Africa, located within their proper historical context, but meticulously presents, critiques and successfully challenges the array of myths, fears, and misinformation which abound in both press reports and some academic studies of China in Africa. * Roger C. Riddell, Author of Does Foreign Aid Really Work? *
If you want to know what China is really doing in Africa, this is the one book to read. The Dragon's Gift corrects the misinformation of both critics and defenders of China's role on the continent. Beijing has a long-term, well-planned strategy that goes way beyond a drive to claim minerals and oil. Yet Africans are benefiting from China's mixture of aid and investment; Western aid officials could learn from it. I was surprised by new facts on almost every page. Brautigam has given us a compelling, objective, and very readable account enlivened by her personal experiences and interviews. * Susan Shirk, Ho Miu Lam Professor of China and Pacific Relations, University of California, San Diego and Director, University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation *
Deborah Brautigam has produced a superbly written and exquisitely researched book on a hotly debated topic ... The book is particularly strong on addressing the question of what the Chinese are doing in their new wave of aid and economic cooperation across Africa. * Jane Golley, The Economic Record *