Scattered Sand

Praise

“Hsiao-Hung Pai’s intrepid journalism is one of the most revealing guides to contemporary China.”—Pankaj Mishra, author of From the Ruins of Empire

“The product of thorough reporting among China’s most marginalised citizens shows what can be discovered despite official obstruction.”—New Statesmen

“Scattered Sand captures the sadness, resilience and anger of China’s millions of internal and international migrants. This illuminating book effortlessly interweaves individual voices, rarely heard by English-speaking audiences, with the history, politics and economics that shape migrants’ stories and their choices.”—Bridget Anderson, author of Doing the Dirty Work: The Global Politics of Domestic Labour

“Hsiao-Hung Pai brings her knowledge of China’s history to this detailed examination of the plight of the millions of peasants searching for work in China’s booming cities and, failing that, in other countries … A grim but keen view of the dark underside of China’s prosperity.”—Kirkus Reviews

“The Chinese ‘miracle’ gets a reality check in this engrossing exposé … A moving contribution to the growing literature on the new China, the book will prove relevant for anyone interested in ongoing debates around migrant labor in a globalized economy.”—Publishers Weekly