China's Millennials: The Want Generation

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In 1989, students marched on Tiananmen Square demanding democratic reform. The Communist Party responded with a massacre, but it was jolted into restructuring the economy and overhauling the education of its young citizens. A generation later, Chinese youth are a world apart from those who converged at Tiananmen. Brought up with lofty expectations, theyve been accustomed to unprecedented opportunities on the back of Chinas economic boom. But today, Chinas growth is slowing and its demographics rapidly shifting, with the boom years giving way to a painful hangover. Immersed in this transition, Eric Fish, a millennial himself, profiles youth from around the country and how they are navigating the education system, the workplace, divisive social issues, and a resurgence in activism. Based on interviews with scholars, journalists, and hundreds of young Chinese, his engrossing book challenges the idea that todays youth have been pacified by material comforts and nationalism. Following rural Henan students struggling to get into college, a computer prodigy who sparked a nationwide patriotic uproar, and young social activists grappling with authorities, Fish deftly captures youthful struggle, disillusionment, and rebellion in a system that is scrambling to keep them in lineand, increasingly, scrambling to adapt when its youth refuse to conform.

Reviews

In debunking generational stereotypes, Mr. Fish gives the future of the worlds most populous country a human face. He also outlines a relationship between the youth and the state that is far more nuanced than many have suggested it to be. The question now is how that relationship will play out once the millennials become Chinas movers and shakers. * The Wall Street Journal *
Empirically very rich, the book is highly entertaining. . . .[T]he book provides a good overview of a variety of social issues. Its detailed descriptions of society through ordinary peoples eyes make the book a good read for anyone who is interested in contemporary Chinese society. It may serve well as a textbook for undergraduate students, or as an introduction to contemporary Chinese society for journalists and other interested non-academic readers. * China Information *
In his new book, China's Millennials:The Want Generation, Mr. Fish draws on his years spent working as a teacher and journalist in China from 2007 to 2014 to give a multi-faceted look at the country's complicated younger generation. Through interviews with struggling factory workers, beleaguered recent graduates, social activists and others, he introduces readers to the generation born during the 1980s and '90s and coming of age at a time when China is newly ascendant on the world stage. * Dow Jones News Service *
It obviously behooves Western companies to increase their understanding of Chinas millennials and many (most) are trying. I was thinking about this today as I reach about the halfway point in the book, Chinas Millennials: The Want Generation, by Eric Fish. Though intended far more as a de Tocqueville-like report on Chinas youth, this well-written book actually makes for an excellent starting point for any company seeking to market to or employ Chinas millennials. Through firsthand reporting on the stories of Chinas young from all over the country, Fish provides a fascinating road-map on how Chinas millennials think. If you are looking to better understand Chinas youth, I highly recommend you read this book. * China Law Blog *
Through nuanced reporting, Eric Fish offers a meaningful comparison between China's youth today and the earlier "Tiananmen generation." The stark differences between them might foretell China's future. -- Xujun Eberlein, author of Apologies Forthcoming
People inside China and around the world will be affected by the values and intentions of China's next rising generation of innovators, disruptors, parents, and citizens. The members of this 'Want Generation' were raised in increasing prosperity but now take their place in a country with dire environmental challenges, newly evident corruption problems, and uncertain political prospects. Eric Fish does a wonderful, accessible job of portraying the complexities of this new generation and the mixture of pride and dissatisfaction with which they regard their country and its future. -- James Fallows, The Atlantic; author of China Airborne
Eric Fishs rare and insightful look at Chinas millennials provides a firsthand description of a new generation unlike any that has come before it. In telling the personal stories of young people from all over China, Mr. Fish offers an invaluable perspective on a cohort that is becoming an important voice in the countryand one that is bound to play an increasingly key role in Chinas present and future. -- Paul J. Mooney, freelance journalist
Eric Fishs new work, Chinas Millennials, chronicles in entertaining, lucid prose the vicissitudes, triumphs, hopes, and prospects of the next generation of one of the worlds most consequential countries. Fishs field of vision ranges from geopolitics to quotidian concerns, and he handles both well. While no one book can capture a generation of 250m, Fish's skillful and engaging mix of anecdotes, observation, and evidence should secure this work a place on the shelf of all who wish to understand the rise of China. -- Walter Russell Mead, Bard College
A really terrific bookone that is both entertaining and extremely informative. It brings to light a number of important trends under way in China today that are likely not well appreciated by many outside the country. -- Elizabeth Economy, Council on Foreign Relations

Author Bio

Eric Fishis a freelance writer who lived in China from 2007 to 2014 as a teacher, student, and journalist. After earning his masters degree from Tsinghua University, he worked as a reporter for theEconomic Observerin Beijing and founded the blog Sinostand.com. He currently writes for the Asia Society in New York City.