As astute as any observer on China with a gift for dialogue, Beijing-based Peter Hessler (River Town, Oracle Bones) shows the absurdity, humor and hope of China in this latest portrait of a nation catapulted into the modern world. Opening with an eventful 7,000-mile road trip along the Great Wall across Northern China, the book also continues with the tale of his time in Sancham, a small farming village, and closes with his time in the factory city of Lishui.  (CHN600, $15.99)