Danger Zone

The Coming Conflict with China

By: Hal Brands, Michael Beckley

Narrated by: Nancy Wu

It has become conventional wisdom that America and China are running a "superpower marathon." Yet Hal Brands and Michael Beckley pose a counterintuitive question: What if the sharpest phase of that competition is more like a decade-long sprint?

The Sino-American contest is driven by clashing geopolitical interests and a stark ideological dispute over whether authoritarianism or democracy will dominate the twenty-first century. But both history and China's current trajectory suggest that this rivalry will reach its moment of maximum danger in the 2020s.

China is at a perilous moment: strong enough to violently challenge the existing order, yet losing confidence that time is on its side. Witness its aggression toward Taiwan, its record-breaking military buildup, and its efforts to dominate the critical technologies that will shape the world's future.

The Chinese challenge will most likely prove more manageable than many pessimists currently believe—but during the 2020s, the pace of Sino-American conflict will accelerate, and the prospect of war will be frighteningly real. America, Brands and Beckley argue, will still need a sustainable approach to winning a protracted global competition.

©2022 Hal Brands and Michael Beckley (P)2022 Tantor

Highly Relevant, Informative & Well-Read

This is a book all policy makers and students of US-China relations should read, and I make this recommendation as the former editor of the website ChinaOnline.

This is not a book written to scare readers into making an impulse purchase. This is a well-thougut-out, thoroughly researched guide on what has been taking place between the US and China, what may happen if we continue on our current path, and what we can do to prevent a military conflict.

At first I didn't like the narrator. I thought her tone was too dramatic for a serious scholarly text. But then Nancy Wu did something few narrators of books on China do: she pronounced Chinese names and place-names correctly, and that won me over.

lf Ms. Wu were to tone down her narrating a tad, it would be pitch perfect.

Hawkish but realistic

A sobering look to the scenarios America is likely to face with a post peak China. Some recommendations are quite hawkish but also persuasive.

Must read for strategists and foreign policy experts

Brilliant analysis of America’s and China’s trajectories and how a China facing certain decline could well become a dangerous risk-taker threatening US vital interests. The book goes beyond merely defining Washington’s challenges in coping with China through the remainder of this decade—the danger zone; it also explores possible US responses and closes with 10 principles to guide America’s thinking and action.

Great topic, not a fan of the narration.

Great topic, not a fan of the narration. A timely topic with historical context woven throughout.

Fascinating Insights into CCP's plans -- Decent Narration too

Super informative analysis of Beijing's diverse strategies for regional and global dominance. Authors provide a lot of evidence and examples to support their points. One of the better PRC geopolitical books I've read so far. Clear, engaging & well written. Ms.Wu's reading style was usually good & listenable, though sometimes too melodramatic. Still, excellent content, so would definitely recommend.

Understanding Future Risk

well documented & presented in a comprehensive manner that lays out facts, alternatives and responsibility

Disagree about performance

Nancy Wu did a great job. I listened carefully and heard no mispronunciations or inappropriate emphasis. Good book

Worthy of your time

Understanding, or at least attempting to understand, others is the key to negotiation. You don’t have to agree with everything in the book, but it gives a good view to the China/USA problem(s). I agree with the assessment that the next 1-7 years is a critical point.

Essential read

Implications of a China in decline is monumental and will influence global lives for decades to come

An expansive discussion of the threat offered by the CCP, and the range of potential responses to the threat.

Jam packed and highly relevant today

Must-read for anyone interested in China’s current mindset

Excellent analysis based both on current condition and historical precedent. Roadmap to avoiding war and winning the peace.