This important collection of theoretically oriented essays on contemporary Chinese culture and politics is an updated and expanded version of a special issue of Social Text (Summer 1998). The selection is multidisciplinary (including history, political science, anthropology) but with an expansive conception of comparative literature at its core. It is more intellectually focused than many China anthologies, no doubt reflecting the strong guiding hand of editor Xudong Zhang, whose 75-page introduction sets an ambitious agenda.