Pang Yang Huei, Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong, 2019, 336 pp., US$55.00 (hardcover). ISBN 978-988-8208-30-2

The process of state-building in China has taken place in phases, beginning with the efforts of the Qing dynasty (1644–1912), the Nationalist government (1928–1949) and later communist rule (1949- present). The literature on the subject has generated a debate on the Chinese endeavours towards state-building with regard to the question of institution-building, the legacy of coercion, intimidation and economic transformation.