How Asia Works: Success and Failure in the World's Most Dynamic Region - Softcover

Joe Studwell is the founder of the China Economic Quarterly. He has worked as a freelance journalist in Asia for nearly two decades. He is the author of The China Dream and Asian Godfathers.

Praise for How Asia Works:

I found the book to be quite compelling. . . . Studwell’s book does a better job than anything else I’ve read of articulating the key role of agriculture in development. . . . A good read for anyone who wants to understand what actually determines whether a developing economy will succeed.” Bill Gates, Top 5 Books of the Year”

Pithy, well-written and intellectually vigorous . . . Studwell’s thesis is bold, his arguments persuasive, and his style pugnacious. It adds up to a highly readable and important book.” Financial Times

Provocative. How Asia Works is a striking and enlightening book A lively mix of scholarship, reporting and polemic.” The Economist

"Very readable.... A fascinating and thoroughly deep account." Bloomberg Radio

Gripping Readers will find Studwell’s informative and balanced report eye-opening.” Publishers Weekly

Consistently engaging.” Booklist

Studwell paints a vivid picture of business life in the region. If a copy of the Korean edition finds its way across the demilitarized zone to Pyongyang we may find we have yet another Asian Tiger in our midst.” Management Today

A solid blend of the descriptive and the prescriptive, with plenty of lessons that will be of interest to Asia hands, investors and policymakers.” Kirkus Reviews

Perhaps my favorite economics book of the year. Quite simply, it is the best single treatment on what in Asian industrial policy worked or did not work, full of both analysis and specific detail, and covering southeast Asia in addition to the Asian tiger winners.’ Definitely recommended, you will learn lots from it, and it will upset people of virtually all ideologies.” Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution

Illuminating” Independent (UK)

An interesting analysis of policy decisions that have and haven’t worked . . . a handy guide for anyone interested in one of the world’s fastest developing regions.” The Economic Times (India)

Studwell’s latest book, How Asia Works, is also his most ambitions. . . . Declining to make broad pronouncements or dovetail with doctrine, Studwell demonstrates that the way Asia works isn’t quite as simple as we ever imagined.” Smart Planet

"A landmark work." Asia Times (Bangkok)

Bold and insightful. . . . Essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the ingredients for economic success.” The News International (Pakistan)