Jeffrey Wasserstrom

Jeffrey Wasserstrom is Chancellor’s Professor of History at UC Irvine and the author of works such as Vigil: Hong Kong on the Brink (2020) and The Milk Tea Alliance: Inside Asia’s Struggle Against Autocracy and Beijing (2025). He is now working on a book about George Orwell and Asia that is under contract with Princeton University Press.

Articles

New and Old Histories of the Qing Dynasty: An Interview with Richard J. Smith
Jeffrey Wasserstrom interviews historian and author Richard J. Smith.
Jeffrey WasserstromAug 2, 2017
Buffalo Bill — A Truth-Bending Showman for Our Times?
Jeffrey Wasserstrom for BLARB Provocations: Buffalo Bill — A Truth-Bending Showman for Our Times?
Jeffrey WasserstromJan 13, 2017
Feminism in China and the Wandering Life: An Interview with Maura Elizabeth Cunningham
Jeffrey Wasserstrom for BLARB China Blog - Feminism in China and the Wandering Life: An Interview with Maura Elizabeth Cunningham
Jeffrey WasserstromJan 11, 2017
Babies, Bylines, and Life in Smoggy Cities: An Interview with Pallavi Aiyar
Jeff Wasserstrom for the BLARB China Blog: Babies, Bylines, and Life in Smoggy Cities: An Interview with Pallavi Aiyar
Jeffrey WasserstromNov 30, 2016
Hong Kong on the Brink
Jeffrey Wasserstrom documents and reflects on the recent protests in Hong Kong.
Jeffrey WasserstromNov 11, 2016
- Around the World
- Politics
Then They Came for the Bookseller
The ongoing threats to free expression in Hong Kong, which are again in the headlines, need to be placed in a long-term historical context.
Jeffrey WasserstromJan 9, 2016
- Around the World
Why Aren’t You Banned Yet?
Jeffrey WasserstromDec 16, 2015
The Odd Couple: On Political Dissent and the Remarkable Similarities Between Mark Twain and Yu Hua
Twain's and Yu's oeuvres are filled with works that demonstrate their keen eye for the small dramas of everyday life and keen ear for linguistic hypocrisy.
Jeffrey WasserstromAug 21, 2015
- Fiction
- Nonfiction
The People’s Pope and the Chairman of Everything
On the parallels between the way the Pope and the "Chairman of Everything" have been framed as public figures.
Jeffrey WasserstromApr 28, 2015
- Around the World
- Cultural Studies
Hong Kong Visions
"I'm used to Hong Kong streets being noisy; instead it was eerily silent."
Jeffrey WasserstromNov 21, 2014
A Tale of Two Summers
Following the News in 1900 and 2014
Jeffrey WasserstromSep 10, 2014
Strangers in the Metropolis: Jeffrey Wasserstrom on Mara Hvistendahl
Jeffrey WasserstromJul 7, 2014
- Nonfiction
China and the Nobel IV
Jeffrey Wasserstrom, Megan ShankDec 21, 2013
- Around the World
- Fiction
A Transnational, Translingual Writer: Claire Conceison on Gao Xingjian
Jeffrey WasserstromNov 4, 2013
All I See Around Me is the Same Old Darkness: Gloria Davies on Lu Xun
Jeffrey WasserstromNov 4, 2013
China and the Nobel III
On Gao Xingjiang and Lu Xun
Jeffrey Wasserstrom, Megan ShankNov 4, 2013
- Literary Fiction