Pieces of China, by Peter Lighte

This small book published in 2009 is worth a read to anyone who knows or knew Peter who still lives on at JPMChase apparently. It's self-aggrandizing in parts, but as a friend said to me just other day, self-regard and writing are synonyms. The chapter "Tibet 1984" should be published in "The New Yorker" today or any day in the future. It is simply that good.

Apart from that it is a history of an individual, Peter, and of the development of a country, China. There are no exact parallels here so the book has an asymmetry that does not tie the book together neatly. Who cares really, but book publishers, reviewers, and promoters probably do.

In my interactions with Peter over the years he was one of the most irreverent people in the banks we worked in, but in a way that was so charming or humorous that he got away with it. I did not bond closely with him as our backgrounds were so different, but we were more or less friendly acquaintances in our early days in banking. I wish him well and really enjoyed this book of essays, great cover too.