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When A Billion Chinese Jump: How China Will Save Mankind -- Or Destroy It Paperback – October 26, 2010

by Jonathan Watts (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars 53 ratings
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When a Billion Chinese Jump is a road journey into the future of our species. Traveling from the mountains of Tibet to the deserts of Inner Mongolia via the Silk Road, tiger farms, cancer villages, weather-modifying bases, and eco-cities, Watts chronicles the environmental impact of economic growth with a series of gripping stories from the country on the front line of global development. He talks to nomads and philosophers, entrepreneurs and scientists, rural farmers and urban consumers, examining how individuals are trying to adapt to one of the most spectacular bursts of change in human history, then poses a question that will affect all of our lives: Can China find a new way forward or is this giant nation doomed to magnify the mistakes that have already taken humanity to the brink of disaster?
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  1. Print length
    448 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Scribner
  4. Publication date
    October 26, 2010
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 1.4 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    141658076X
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1416580768
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Asian environmental correspondent for the Guardian, Watts travels to the four corners of China, from the southwest Himalayan region, rebranded as "Shangri-la" to attract tourists, to Xanadu (Shangdu) in Inner Mongolia, exploring how Beijing is balancing economic growth with sustainability and whether China will "emerge as the world's first green superpower" or tip our species "over the environmental precipice." What he finds is both hopeful and disturbing. Wildlife refuges, rather than focusing on biodiversity, breed animals for meat and traditional remedies like black bear bile. The city of Ordos plans to build a huge wind farm and solar plant, but these benefits are offset by its coal-liquification mine, "an environmentalist's worst nightmare" of greenhouse gases and water exploitation. The Chinese dictatorship, envied by other nations for its ability to enact environmental changes without the slow democratic process, turns out to be ineffective, with power lying with developers and local bureaucracies. Readers interested in global warming will appreciate the firsthand information about China, and Watts's travels are so extensive and China is changing so fast, some material is likely to be fresh and new even for Sinologists.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Watts, an environmental correspondent for the Guardian, moved to Beijing in 2003 and found himself in the midst of an environmental crisis. Traveling through the vast land, Watts witnessed the toll that dams and railways take on the mountains of Tibet, and took part in an expedition to locate the last of a dwindling dolphin species known as the baiji, which was declared extinct after the search failed to turn up even a single one. He saw where Western waste—everything from computer hard drives to hotel welcome mats—piled up to be recycled in Guangdong and witnessed the suffering of people afflicted with cancer and AIDS in overcrowded Henan province. This stands in stark contrast to the luxuries of modernized cities, such as Shanghai, or even industrial villages like Huaxi, where citizens enjoy higher standards of living, in exchange for handing their paper wealth over to the authorities. Watts also meets forward-looking thinkers, such as Li Can, a professor working on solar power. Watts’ comprehensive, revealing study is eye-opening, not only for the way it illuminates how China’s population growth and rapid modernization affect the environment, but also for its exposure of the way Western waste contributes to the problem. --Kristine Huntley

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Scribner
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 26, 2010
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ First Edition
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 448 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 141658076X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1416580768
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.4 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 out of 5 stars 53 ratings

About the author

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Jonathan Watts

Jonathan Watts

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Jonathan Watts is Latin America correspondent for The Guardian. He was formerly Asia environment correspondent and president of the Foreign Correspondents' Club of China.

Watts' multimedia career includes seven years in Japan, five trips to North Korea, the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2008 Sichuan earthquake and Beijing Olympics and the 2011 Tohoku tsunami. He has lived in London, Manchester, Tokyo, Beijing and now Rio de Janeiro, contributing also at times to the BBC, CNN, Mother Jones, Christian Science Monitor, South China Morning Post, Daily Yomiuri and Asahi Shimbun.

For more information about his book and related multimedia: http://site.whenabillionchinesejump.com

To comment or to see slideshow: http://www.facebook.com/pages/When-a-Billion-Chinese-Jump/102829453102575?ref=mf

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
53 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book extensively researched and fascinating, with one review highlighting its stunningly detailed notes on Chinese culture and history. They describe it as powerful, with one customer noting it portrays China as a superpower with billions of citizens. The book receives positive feedback for its readability, though some customers find it depressing.

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Narrative lengthReadabilityPowerPacing
11 customers mention "Narrative length"11 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's narrative length, finding it fascinating and extensively researched, with one customer noting its stunningly detailed notes on Chinese culture and history.

"...Jonathan Watts' work traverses travelogue, historical account, anthropological study, environmental reporting, and socio-political commentary...." Read more

"...This book is definitely interesting! The author is an experienced journalist who knew his stuff and reported the facts in a fairly engaging way...." Read more

"This was an intriguing story of China, a superpower with billions of citizens, even so many that you can just guess what is the total number of its..." Read more

"...Both fascinating and disturbing, the author deserves credit for the breadth and scope of his work." Read more

7 customers mention "Readability"7 positive0 negative

Customers find the book interesting to read.

"3 is a little too low, 4 is a little too high. This book is definitely interesting!..." Read more

"...This is a must read book for anyone involved with development in China, or who are interested in the environment and sustainability...." Read more

"Great book. Very thorough. Disturbing stories from all over China about the environmental disasters that are occuring in much of the country...." Read more

"...This book is new and the delivery is fast. I think it's a great book regarding its content and topics. highly recommended." Read more

3 customers mention "Power"3 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's power, with one highlighting China's potential as a superpower with billions of citizens.

"...It's on that score that this book is particularly powerful and significant...." Read more

"This was an intriguing story of China, a superpower with billions of citizens, even so many that you can just guess what is the total number of its..." Read more

"A powerful and scary expose that you won't forget..." Read more

5 customers mention "Pacing"0 positive5 negative

Customers find the pacing of the book negative, with one customer describing it as very depressing and another noting that the chapters have bleak conclusions.

"...Also, this is a very depressing book. Most chapters have a pretty bleak conclusion...." Read more

"...It is a very sad and worrying tale, which fills in many of the pieces of the puzzle that I saw while working there...." Read more

"...about 150 pages, the book becomes very tedious, just one depressing story after another...." Read more

"...It is not an uplifting book but full of sorrow but one that should be taught in high schools and colleges...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Sophie
    5.0 out of 5 stars Everything's connected.
    Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2012
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Maybe it was an expression just in my family to mean that something's absurdly unrelated--but as a kid, I used to hear "What's THAT got to do with the tea in China?" And "A Billion Chinese" gives us the answer (so to speak). In fact, it even conveys that, specifically, "Guangdong is where China and your life intersect."

    Extensively researched, heavily annotated, this book offers stunningly detailed notes on Chinese culture and history. You'll encounter here, by turn, the country's contemporary pop icons, novelists, national park directors, along with a little Confucius and sayings of Chairman Mao. Jonathan Watts' work traverses travelogue, historical account, anthropological study, environmental reporting, and socio-political commentary. (Until the 1990s, signs on cages in the Beijing Zoo described what parts of the animal could be eaten, or used in Chinese medicine. . . . Under contentious study is whether Sichuan's mega-dams contributed to its recent earthquake . . . Land development follows the "US model of suburban villas and car commutes," etc.) The wonder is that Watts accomplishes all this in about 300 pages (not counting another 100, or so, of fine-print notes and references).

    This is a must-read for anyone making a study of China, or planning travel there.

    But beyond that, what's it got to do with the rest of us? It's on that score that this book is particularly powerful and significant. He reports, yes, how the Developed World outsources the darker consequences of its consumption--beginning a chapter with the image of a plastic bag (recycled!) from a Western grocery chain, billowing atop a Chinese schoolyard tree. But more: Watts describes the impacts of a China that is simply in the vanguard of any society now pursuing economic development and wealth, while being largely heedless of the welfare of its environment and people. And that might include more of us than just the Chinese . . . .
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read
    Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2019
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    3 is a little too low, 4 is a little too high. This book is definitely interesting! The author is an experienced journalist who knew his stuff and reported the facts in a fairly engaging way. However the author has a very "journalistic" style and it sometimes feels like I'm reading a news article. Which is mostly fine, but can get a little dull at points. Also, this is a very depressing book. Most chapters have a pretty bleak conclusion. That's really just the nature of a nonfiction book which deals with global warming and related political/social problems - but just don't expect much sugar coating!

    It did help me prepare for a study abroad trip in China and gave some interesting perspectives on the current situation. I'd recommend this to someone who's going to visit China soon.
    Helpful
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  • Non PC
    4.0 out of 5 stars Extremely Comprehensive Narrative
    Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2013
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    This book reviews the pollution issues in many of the far ranging districts of China. All I can say is that I hope China is able get their arms around this before it gets any worse. The long term health effects on the Chinese people are going to be unbelievable. Highly recommended if you are curious about the terrible ripple effects of making cheap products for people around the world.
    One person found this helpful
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  • a1234
    5.0 out of 5 stars well written
    Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2012
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    This was an intriguing story of China, a superpower with billions of citizens, even so many that you can just guess what is the total number of its citizens. And yes, many of these issues have been on the news. Many are familiar problems even in US and in any other developed country, like pollution, fast pace of technology, and increasing need for electricity, fuel, and food.

    Therefore, it is no wonder that China is the topic of this book. It's growing so fast, and it has a great potential to either save the world and nature with its decisions or destroy the nature, pollute the air and water even more... A lot depends on its leaders and what will happen there in the near future.

    I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the global politics, global environmental issues, and a growing superpower.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Christopher R. Bennett
    5.0 out of 5 stars Billiant but sobering book
    Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2011
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    As he journeys the length and breadth of China he observes the impact of China's--and the world's--development on the land, flora and fauna. It is a very sad and worrying tale, which fills in many of the pieces of the puzzle that I saw while working there.

    I didn't appreciate that while we were busy planting trees on our road projects, that they came from but two types of poplars and the lack of biodiversity is having a major negative impact on the bird life. While I saw the grim conditions of many workers, I didn't know that much of what we recycle in the west ends up in these dark, dank factories in China where it is processed with no regard to the workers or the environment. I knew that by building improved infrastructure we were permitting factories to relocate inland, but I didn't appreciate that this was also transferring the pollution problem inland. I always was worried about the quality of the vegetables and other products, now I see that there was good cause to be.

    After cataloging the litany of problems faced by China, the author turns to the possibilities in terms of the adoption of green technologies, etc. Unfortunately, against the backdrop of the problems one has to wonder whether China has passed a point of no return with addressing its environmental issues. I do hope not, but the signs are not good.

    This is a must read book for anyone involved with development in China, or who are interested in the environment and sustainability. Both fascinating and disturbing, the author deserves credit for the breadth and scope of his work.
    9 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • J. Milton
    5.0 out of 5 stars An eye-opening read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 30, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    This is travel writing at its best. Having lived in China for a number of years it is clear that Jonathan Watts knows a great deal about what he is talking about and manages to weave together one story about an emerging China with another about the unique characteristics of each region and what makes some more successful, both economically and environmentally, than others.

    The book follows Jonathan Watts as he travels through regions of China, some regions being a chapter by themselves and others being combined together. Each chapter combines a potted history about the region(s) presented alongside the current state of the region(s), astounding facts and figures and personal testimonies about the effects of economic development upon the environment.

    As stated by previous reviewers, this book is non-judgemental in its assessment of China. It does state the environmental pitfalls of economic development and as said, gives some astounding facts and figures in doing so, but also states quite clearly the progress that China is making towards green development. In doing so, you are allowed to come to your own conclusion about China's green credentials and whether China is seeking dominion or stewardship over their (and others) environments.

    An eye-opening read.
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  • Amoros
    5.0 out of 5 stars Livre excellent sur l'ère du Développement Durable en Chine
    Reviewed in France on November 10, 2014
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Ce livre nous invite à explorer l'éventrement de la Chine dans sa course effrénée au développement : déluge de pollution, apocalypse des habitats naturels, poison au menu de chaque repas. La Chine sera Durable ou périra. Le super-tanker chinois amorce l'inflexion de sa courbe. Evitera-il l'iceberg ? Pour vous faire une idée, rien de mieux que cet ouvrage très bien écrit !
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  • Cliente Amazon
    3.0 out of 5 stars bien estructurado
    Reviewed in Spain on October 2, 2017
    Verified Purchase
    Es un libro interesante para poder entender el porque de la contaminación en China y sus consecuencias. Está elaborado por zonas geográficas lo que lo hace estructurado. De todas formas no hay datos de contaminación precisos o identidades que las gestionan.
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  • I E Linley
    3.0 out of 5 stars good book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 6, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    interesting
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  • Michael Wadge
    4.0 out of 5 stars Michael Wadge of Bristol
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 16, 2010
    Verified Purchase
    This is a fascinating and horrifying book about the determination of the Chinese authorities to achieve massive economic growth regardless of the dreadful consequences for the environment in terms of appalling levels of pollution, over exploitation of natural reserves and the health of its people. As the author argues so cogently we all live on a planet that has finite resources and what has been happening and is continuing to happen in China is of grave concern to the rest of the world. One can only hope that China will finally, albeit belatedly, realise that it needs to treat conservation seriously not only to protect its own future but also that of mankind as a whole.
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