Tiger Head, Snake Tails: China today, how it got there and why it has to change

by Jonathan Fenby

This is a comprehensively updated account of where China stands today, covering the generational change in the leadership completed in March 2013, the Bo Xilai scandal and the changing course of the world's second largest economy and the last major state ruled by a Communist Party. Named as a book of the year by the Guardian, the Financial Times and Bloombery Business Week, it lays out the reality behind the spectacular statistics and explains why China has to change if it is to maintain its development and avoid major internal problems China's importance as an increasingly significant global force is a phenomenon of our times, but the world's most heavily populated nation has a history of catastrophe and tragedy, tyranny and repression, abject poverty, unfair business practice and corruption - and now faces environmental degradation and a demographic time bomb. In this compelling and lucid account based on years of research and first-hand experience, Jonathan Fenby links together the myriad features of today's China. He delivers a unique and coherent picture of its essence and evolution and contemplates its future - both alone and connected to the world around it.'A bestselling examination of modern China by an experienced and fluent commentator' - Financial Times

Genres: China, History, Nonfiction, Politics, Economics, Travel, Asia

433 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Jonathan Fenby, CBE, has been the editor of The Observer and the South China Morning Post. He is currently China Director at the research service Trusted Sources.

Reviews

[Shahine Ardeshir · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the positive side, this is honestly a fascinating book. If you're looking to brush up on all aspects China - economic, historical, political, religious, social - this book is a one-stop guide to everything you need. It's full of incredible stories, covers places and aspects of China that (I) didn't know existed, and literally has a 'wow' fact on every single page.

The trouble is, this can sometimes be too much of a good thing. After a couple of chapters, I realised that while every page was indeed fascinating, I was so overloaded with information that I had retained little or nothing. I eventually gave in with about three chapters left, and to be honest, I would have to go back to reference it if I wanted to 'learn' anything really.

I would, therefore, recommend with this book with a huge caveat: It is more a reference or text book in its style than a casual read. It is therefore best digested in small pieces over a long period of time, rather than attempting it in one shot. A great book, truly, if you want to understand more about the mammoth that is China; but a lot of information to digest.

[Ardra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book seems to be a stream of consciousness stroll through modern China. Sometimes it seems to be random facts strung together. That said, it is interesting and you will get in-depth observations of rural and city life, rail construction, the widening gap of China's wealthy business people vs. poor immigrant factory workers.

[Jacob]

Tiger Head, Snake Tail is a good book for anyone interested in modern China. Unlike many books that claim to prophesise the imminent rise or fall of China, this book focuses on putting the vast array of potential outcomes in context and offers a good overview of the opportunities and challenges facing the worlds most populous nation. At times it can read a little it like a catalogue of data with long streams of facts and figures but is nonetheless a very interesting read. Anyone who seriously wants to understand China should read this book.

[Derek Henderson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fact, facts, facts and more facts. I ended up skipping large chunks - I couldn't see the wood for the trees.

[Tariq Mahmood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deeply engaging book on everything China. I was specifically looking for reasons how China has developed so rapidly as opposed other nations. The book highlights certain factors which have brought China out of depression. Ethnic Hans dominate the power echelons without any threat from any other Mainland ethnicities.
The Central Party's control on propaganda and law, helps it propagate its Confusion styled 'civilized state' as compared to chaotic and unruly Western states. This control of Great Firewall by the government has managed to subvert any local issues successfully so far, keeping the general focus on the masses on working hard much akin to a Corporate fashion rather than a government thus far, but if the Chinese want to become a Superpower than they must embrace values like freedom and justice. And these values have to be seen implemented at the domestic level before this can be propagated as a foreign policy. The other aspect is the copy-paste strategy employed by China, can this be transmuted into a cutting edge strategy successfully?

[Daniel Bramble · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this book in 2025 is a fascinating experience, especially for someone who was starting to come into political awareness at the time this book was written around 2013. The last chapter of the book is a reflection on Xi Jinping and the leader that he will become, an immensely interesting reference point given both the substantial changes that haven’t occurred and the many factors discussed through the book that remain relevant to the day. My only quibble with the writing is the tendency to jump around rapidly between examples, at times feeling like a dumping of accounts rather than building of an argument/point. Overall though, with hindsight in hand, it’s a detailed, expert study in the subject matter which embraces nuance while still being told in an engaging fashion.

[Peter Gregoire · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this ambitious work, Jonathan Fenby proves himself once again, a writer unafraid to take on massive subjects. From a point in time when China stood on the verge of its generational change of leadership in 2012, Fenby takes an in depth snapshot of where China is, how it got there and where it is going. In so doing, he gives us a superb analysis which dives deeply into the complexities of China's political, economic, social, regional and demographic strands.

What emerges from Fenby's book is that reaching any conclusive answers, or indeed identifying consistent themes, on these issues is virtually impossible, given that China is such a vast, complex and multi-faceted nation. China has transformed so rapidly since, in 1978, Deng XiaoPing coupled free-market economics with the maintenance of the authoritarian control system built by Mao, that pinning it down is like nailing jelly to a wall.

Just a few of the facts Fenby tells us to illustrate this are worth quoting here. Six of China's 31 provinces, municipalities and regions would, if they were nation states, rank in the world's thirty-two largest nations in terms of purchasing power. Five of its provinces have more inhabitants than Western Europe. With mind-boggling superlatives like this, Fenby puts China, for the reader, in its proper context. It is a country about which so many opposing sweeping contradictory generalizations have been made, because China is of such magnitude in everything, that plenty of evidence can be found to support all sides of the argument, all the time. On its face, China may seem like a single unit governed by control from the top-down. But below the surface lie many different strands. China is a tiger head, with many different snake tails (hence the name of the book).

How can China's constraining political control system continue to cope with such a fast-changing, multi-dimensional society? This is one of the main questions that the book takes on.

On one side of the equation Fenby gives us a snapshot of China, economically, being a nation on speed. Its telephone system has been transformed in 10 years from a rudimentary one, into the most modern of modern communication systems, with 930 million mobile handsets and 420 million internet users. The number of cars China produced leapt from 2 million in 2000 to 18 million in 2010. Consumption is conspicuous (like the wife of a Shanxi coal mine owner who, on a trip to Paris asked to see the most expensive handbag in the shop and ordered two dozen of them), prices have risen as a result and the uniformity of the Mao era has been replaced by the diversity of middle class wealth. Regulations have abjectly failed to keep pace with this economy on steroids, however. Safety scandals abound, from coalmines to milk powder to railways.

On the other side of the equation is the controlling nature of the political regime. The genie is out of the bottle, many commentators suggest, and it is only a matter of time before the economic diversity unleashed will rupture the constraints of the political strait jacket. But Fenby gives a deeper picture of the extent to which that control goes. The Communist Party is deeply embedded within the new economic system it has created. Those who have benefited from the new economy are Party members and have an interest in perpetuating the political system. Indeed, it is the Party that has delivered this economic progress: more people have been made better off in a shorter space in time than ever before in human history. The Party's goal in perpetuating growth (and hence, itself) is why China's foreign policy is purely realist in seeking out guaranteed sources of raw material to feed the domestic economy's appetite. Foreign companies are allowed in, but only for what they can offer by way of knowledge transfer, rather than to participate on equal terms. More surreptitious means of knowledge transfer are revealed through the hacking scandals and the 863 programme started in Beijing in 1986 which aimed to acquire technology from abroad by any means. This is the realization of the 19th century self-strengtheners doctrine, which aimed to take the methods of the barbarians, but make them better. Capitalism with Chinese characteristics, is Deng's perfection of the socialist model.

Economic expansion is what underpins the preservation of the regime, according to Fenby, from which its legitimacy and support is derived. That this political system may collapse when the economy goes into reverse, unless some form of political reform is undertaken to provide the right safety valves, is the conclusion Fenby reaches following his extensive review. In this, Fenby's answer is no different from many other China commentators.

For me, however, the real value of the book is not so much the unoriginal conclusion, but the astonishing breadth and depth of the snapshot which Fenby provides of China. China is a hugely complicated nation, but recognizing these complexities is vital to our understanding of a country that is dominating, and will continue to dominate this century.

Peter Gregoire - author of Article 109

[Jeroen Van de Crommenacker · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not completely impressed by the book. It is topical and enough of interest though.

[Suraj · Rating 2 out of 5]

Informative, but not interesting.

[Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the best book to read on a high speed train in China talking about high speed train crashes and how badly everything is build

[Adrian · Rating 5 out of 5]

We already had one masterwork from Jonathan Fenby in his Penguin History of Modern China. With such a hard work to follow, questions were abound, at least with this reader, as to whether this volume could live up to the standard of a previous masterwork. Jonathan Fenby certainly has lived up to his reputation.
Tiger Head Snake Tails is a metaphorical title referring to the all powerful head of China, it's fast paced economic growth and potential for world dominance, the Tiger's head, contrasting with the Snake tails, the underlying faults and cracks in the mirror.
The book opens with an examination of China's startling re-emergence and all the underlying details that astonish more than the simple GDP figures, how maps in Shanghai need constantly updating, how China produces enough toxic ash every two minutes to fill an Olympic size swimming pool, how Mainland Chinese make up the bulk of foreign students in the US and UK, and how luxury goods shops in Paris are forced to limit the amount of goods Chinese shoppers can buy.
However, the more masterful part of Fenby's work is to examine the underlying faults of the Chinese system, which appear in regular western parlance as little more than phrases like social inequality, or human rights violations. Fenby puts flesh on the bones and provides the stories behind the headlines. These range from the high level of people suffering from depression, the cases of human rights lawyers who have been arrested and arbitrarily tortured without trial or charges, to cases such as the 2011 Wenzhou Rail Disaster and the attempted cover up.
Examinations of history are given, but without digressing too much into the details of the Maoist past. Rather, the chapter on history, rather appropriately entitled "Owning History" is an expose on how the Communist Party use the reading of history to their own ends, and their own justification for legitimacy.
A major theme in the book, and again, one of those words which is often circulated but without providing much details, is corruption. Here we are given the extent of China's corruption, leading from embezzlement and bribes of local officials, incorrect and dangerous product safety, and the extent that nearly everyone is implicated and exposure of corruption, in the case of Bo Xilai, has more to do with falling out with the party consensus rather than the actual crimes themselves.
Corruption and environmental degradation are presented as the major obstacles that could derail China's ascent.
The other aspect, often circulated in the news, is China's impending property bubble. Fenby takes neither a bullish nor a bearish line, and takes into account the severity of this bubble, but also accounts for the state controls and nature of the Chinese system, a system which could, conceivably, see off a major market disruption and avoid a Japanese style lost decade.
Toward the end of the book, Fenby offers a fairly clear and revealing picture of China's outgoing and incoming leaders, with more information provided on Xi Jinping than previous news accounts have provided, making him less of the dark horse this reader previously viewed him as.
The only discernible fault with the work, and it's no real fault of the author's, is the difficulty of writing an up to date work on politics, no matter how fast the turnover time from printing to publication. By the time of this books publication in June 2012, a major character within the book, Bo Xilai, was already removed from the political scene. No need to recount the very familiar circumstances of his removal.
This book is a recommended read for both China newcomers and bonafide Sinologists. Having read over 12 books on China in recent years, and having lived in China for 3 years, this still informs this leader of new things, and consolidates previously acquired knowledge.
This is a book that should be read by all, regardless of how tepid, or strong, one's interest in China is.

[Jack Hargreaves · Rating 4 out of 5]

A truly thorough guide to the wins and woes leading up to modern day China

Explodes, sweeps up and then neatly rearranges so much of what one thought one knew about China. Essential reading for anyone engage in studies on China, intending to live there for an extended period of time or just very interested by the country's current affairs. One warning note (though it shouldn't dissuade the curious): economics often escapes me, and so some explanations here I found quite heavenly and boring - my own fault really, should read up. Just be warned for those similarly lacking that knowledge.

[N.P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jonathan Fenby’s book is a comprehensive overview of the China of today and the history that has got it there. And make no mistake this is a big subject, huge, colossal.

The task he has taken on, however, does run the risk of drowning the reader in statistics and anecdotes explaining China’s progression to world power status.

The book opens with a chronicling of the recent explosive growth that China has experienced and the way that it has been seen by the outside world. It sets the reader up for the next 388 pages which run us through the reasons why China is the way it is today. All the widely held beliefs and many of the misconceptions are explored in depth and it is interesting to see the truths behinds many of these turn out to be far more complex than you would think (a case in point is why the Chinese Communist Party will not allow local and regional party officials to collect taxes locally as this would take away a level of central control which is held in Beijing by the fact they can dole out funds to underfunded regions, thereby keeping everybody in line.)

As the book goes on it becomes clear that the wellbeing of the party trumps everything and, whilst the party officials might make noises otherwise, this is something that will never change. It also means that there is an ever widening gap between those that have the contacts to succeed and those that don’t and this is turning in to a problem.

The issue of corruption is shown to be far more complex than someone just passing over a brown paper envelope in exchange for a favourable planning decision. It comes in many guises from money (rarely used as it is easily traceable) to fine wine or controlling interests in companies that have preferential contracts with the state to patronage over many years that ultimately influences the decision as to who makes the standing committee and who runs China. To give you some idea how pervasive corruption is, we find out that every major city has a store in it where CCP officials can go and exchange their gifts for cash!

What becomes clear over the course of the book is that the story behind modern China is far more complex than is at first thought and that the inevitable rise of the country is not nearly as steady as at seems. This is a country that has a lot of pitfalls which it will have to avoid if it is to sustain its current position as the pre-eminent economy on the planet (it has just passed the US as the number one economy in the world as I write this).

It is clear that, whilst China does not have an expansionist policy (if you ignore the south China seas that is) it is impossible for a country of this size to not influence the countries in its region and the wider world. To get all this across to the reader is a major achievement and it is to Jonathan Fenby’s credit that he manages to hold the readers interest in this excellent study of modern china.

[Adithya Jain · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a complete and extremely detailed description of the rise of China over the last century. The author delves into great detail while describing aspects of China - be it politics, economics, culture of thinking. The amount of research done to get this book written becomes obvious as this book has a wealth of information about the changes that have been happening in China of late. As the author himself says, this is no book for a scholar. It's written for people who are extremely interested in china and would like to know more about it but at the same time do not know where to go for that sort of information. From that perspective the author has certainly lived up to tje promise. This book also gives us an understanding of how the Chinese think about themselves and how western perspectives are at complete loggerheads with their ideas about themselves and the world.

My only problem with the book was that sometimes it delved into too much detail about things. I found myself pushing myself to finish the book , wondering why its not ending. Each of the chapters have an underlying theme, but sometimes I found them not well demarcated. Things appeared to be too scattered. And also I found myself wanting to tell the author to move on. "Ok. I got it. Can we please go to the next topic ?"

But I certainly think it was worth a read. A completely unbiased perspective of the rise of this modern miracle.

[Ian McHugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book sat on my shelves in Shanghai for two years. I would 'dip' into it occasionally for insight but never managed the whole thing - put off by the obvious 'weight' of the analysis. I'm glad I waited until I left China to read this...I now feel I have a sense of perspective that I would not oTherwise have gained.
The book is a thorough, intelligent analysis of China today (well...2014). The argumentation is engaging and illuminating and the balance achieved by Fenby is admirable. There is insight here about the future prospects of China and a great deal of the text, whilst providing sometimes exhaustive examples, cuts through a lot of the lazy headline grabbing "China will inherit the world" narrative.
What Fenby does is provide a complex evaluation of China and shows how, although reform is needed - whether social, political, economic, or representational - the intrinsic linkage of all facets of the modern state and CCP structure mean that a simple option, although apparent to outsiders, is a much more difficult thing to achieve.
The utter complexity of the argument and the depth of analysis is what make this a brilliant book on Modern China. I'd highly recommend it to those interested in China and how it may develop in the coming years. As one of the cover quotes states, it's a great "one stop shop" for all you need to know.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

First, the good news: Tiger Head, Snake Tails works as a solid introduction on modern China. Fenby has no doubt covered every statistic and recent event worth highlighting.

Now, for the not-so-good. This book is so crammed full of statistics and recent events, in parts it reads more like an endless list of information than part of a wider narrative.

Ultimately though, this book works well: There is enough historical and cultural context to give lay people (such as myself) a decent understanding of how and why China is what we observe today. I found Fenby's observations on corruption, multinationals' failures and frustrations in China, and how the nation is extending its reach across the globe insightful reading.

I read the "fully updated" edition. Read it while it's still relevant!

[Steve Gillway · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really interesting book. The author has fantastic snippets of info about a plethora of subjects and, in a journalistc way he just can't resist adding them in. It makes for an enjoyable read, but at the end You could end up like me remembering the trivial, China wanted to ban Kungfu Panda, and being hazy about the general thrust of such an enormous place. I have the feeling about China, that as soon as I think I understand something about it, it will have changed markedly. This is because of the breakneck speed of development.

[Dave Hutcheson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good introduction, and explanation of the current state of China. Sheds light on the tensions between China, itself, the party, the people, other nations and the world that arise from China's growth as a nation and emergence as a major world power. You will better understand China's history, its present and the environment the Chinese people live within.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Either China is a blueprint for the future of capitalism, or its on the verge of economic, social, and environmental implosion. This book leans towards the latter view, and that it must change to survive. It's a well-researched book and easy to read, although rather disconcerting!

[Vernon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit repeative on his theories but I gained a better knowledge on the rising economic power.

[Maddie Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

very factual but hard to put down...

[Ali Miremadi · Rating 3 out of 5]

More fun (and probably more memorable) than homework.

[Fred Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you enjoy reading statistics you will love this book.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fascinating overview of China today with a brief nod to the past and how it has influenced China, sometimes overwhelmed by the detail and sheer scope of the topic.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and well-written. Published in 2012, the book ends just before the new leader Xi Jinping takes over as leader of China.

[Tony Blackmore]

Fact heavy look at what has created the contemporay China. Yet, things are changing so fast that it already seems dated.