Maura Elizabeth Cunningham

So … 2026. What a year, huh?

🤨

One good thing: I had the pleasure of serving as moderator for my friend Joseph Torigian at a discussion of his book, The Party’s Interests Come First: The Life of Xi Zhongxun, Father of Xi Jinping, at Three Cats in Clawson, MI this afternoon. Three Cats is a restaurant/gift shop/event space in an old theater, so Joseph got to see his name up on the marquee:

The talk was very well-attended (about 50 people in the audience), lots of people bought the book, and I got a plate of the justifiably praised Three Cats cornflake French toast. So, all in all a great afternoon in an otherwise bizarre weekend.

Thanks for joining me this week.

Recommendations

China Stories

Helen Davidson, “‘Ferryman of the souls’: the man who helps Taiwan’s dead return home to China”

The white dome of Boudhanath rises like a silent guardian over the chaotic sprawl of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, crowned by a golden spire that pierces the sky. Painted on each of the spire’s four sides are the benevolent eyes of the Buddha — wide, calm, and unblinking — said to see all that unfolds below. Those eyes have served as a symbol of sanctuary for generations of Tibetans fleeing the Chinese crackdown in their homeland. But today, Tibetan refugees are also watched by far more malevolent eyes: Thousands of CCTV cameras from China, perched on street corners and rooftops to monitor every movement below. This intense surveillance has stifled the once-vibrant Free Tibet movement that had resonated around the world.

— Aniruddha Ghosal and Dake Kang, “US tech enabled China’s surveillance empire. Now Tibetan refugees in Nepal are paying the price”

Amy Hawkins, “‘They want to destroy my career’: Kiwi Chow on life as a dissenting director in Hong Kong”

For many other Chinese people in Ukraine, support for Kyiv comes from a distrust of authoritarianism. With no way of expressing their political beliefs in China, Ukraine has become a forum in which some Chinese feel they can play a more active role in the global struggle between democracy and dictatorship. But their support comes at a price: harassment from Beijing, for themselves and their families.

— Amy Hawkins, “A little light in the dark’: the former Chinese police officer bringing bubble tea to wartorn Ukraine”

Andrew Higgins, with visuals by Gilles Sabrié, “China’s Russian Town Has Log Cabins and Cyrillic Signs, but No Russians”

Jay Root, Bianca Pallaro, and Michael Forsythe, with photographs by Shuran Huang, “Behind Oklahoma Cannabis Farms, New Yorkers With Ties to Beijing”

Jeffrey Wasserstrom, “The Best China Books of 2025”

Wanderings Around the World

The Economist, “The long, strange journey of a temple from profane to sacred”

Featured photo: Night falls on Chicago, IL, January 4, 2019.