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How Asia WorksBook

by Joe Studwell

Who uses, recommends or left How Asia Works, in their own words: each a verbatim quote with a link to where it was said.

2 people

Development economist; writes Global Developments, on growth, history and the numbers behind them.
loved

Reading How Asia Works was a formative intellectual experience for me—a jolt out of the mathematical slumber of PhD coursework. I have a complex relationship with the text (more on this in a moment), but I still recommend it effusively to anyone who wants to learn about East Asia.

A review of Joe Studwell's How Africa Works, comparing it to Studwell's earlier How Asia Works.

2026-02-10·global-developments.org ↗

Co-founder of Microsoft and the Gates Foundation; publishes book reviews and essays at Gates Notes.
liked

How Asia Works is not a gripping page-turner aimed at general audiences, but it’s a good read for anyone who wants to understand what actually determines whether a developing economy will succeed.

Gates reviews Joe Studwell's book on Asian development economics.

2014-12-08·gatesnotes.com ↗

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The verdict is what they actually said: loved and liked are explicit; recommended means they told others to get it; uses means they only say they use it; read is a book on their public shelf with no verdict; mixed and disliked are kept too.

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