On my way back to China last month, I stopped by the news stand at Newark’s Liberty International Airport, as I often do, hoping to find a good read for the flights to Chicago and then Beijing. Always on the lookout for new authors, I spotted The Faithful Spy by Alex Berenson, a book which received the Edgar Award for best first novel. I was so enthralled by the time I landed in Chicago that I didn’t hesitate to buy Alex’s second book, The Ghost War, at the O’Hare bookstore. The Ghost War came out in February and opens with a daring rescue attempt in the waters off North Korea, and ends with a harrowing escape from China by sea. For those of you who regularly take the 13-hour flight to Beijing or Shanghai and want a good book to shorten the trip, I highly recommend both. Read them in order, though, because each features the adventures of CIA agent John Wells.

In the acknowledgments section of The Ghost War, I was impressed that Alex went out of his way to thank his readers. It’s a big undertaking to write a book, he said, but to know that people are reading it, and that some even take the time to pass along their comments, whether positive or negative, makes it all worthwhile. Having just come out with my own book, Alex’s comment struck a responsive chord and motivated me to do something I have never done before. I e-mailed him, even though we had never met, to tell him how much I enjoyed his writing.

Managing the Dragon has been out one week now. The book has been well received, and I am fortunate that all of the initial reviews, from both individuals and the media, have been positive. The Economist led off with a very positive review several weeks ago, followed by excellent reviews from Booklist and The Financial Times. In this first week of the launch, several more reviews came out.

Aaron Brown, an accomplished author, investment professional and educator in his own right, was the first to post on Amazon. Here is what he said:

This is a book about a life and business adventure. I’m not particularly interested in how to do business in China, but I was fascinated by the decisions the author made. This is a wonderful book for anyone considering innovation. It describes how a successful 40-year-old decided to take his life in an entirely new direction, building on what he knew, but also taking chances on things he knew little about. It’s people like this who change the world, learning how along the way. He has the insight and writing talent to relate his journey to his roots in impoverished coal country, as well as lessons learned playing football at Yale and working on Wall Street.

The title of Daniel Harris’ post on China Law Blog, “Managing the Dragon, The Best, Jerry. The best.” says it all. Dan went on:

This book is the best book I have read on how to do business in China. The best, Jerry! Businesspeople often ask me what book they should read to learn about China. From now on, I will tell them, Managing the Dragon. It is that good.

One of the reasons I liked it so much is because I agreed with just about every word of advice in there on how to conduct business in China. The book helped me to hone my speech, because my speech was pretty much tracking the book’s advice before I had even read it.

In addition to being a great primer on how to conduct business in China, parts of it were simply riveting. My favorite chapters were on how Perkowski managed to extricate his company from a couple of joint ventures, once peacefully and once by having to engage in “guerrilla warfare.” I absolutely loved the warfare chapter both because it was so exciting and because I went through pretty much the exact same thing (just add threatened violence and vodka) on behalf of a client in Russia.

Dan also took the time to post a review on Amazon, for which I am most grateful.

Alan Wheatley, the China economics editor for Reuters, wrote a review (as edited by Eddie Evans) which was picked up by guardian.co.uk and The Boston Globe over the weekend.

Alan made my day with his opening sentences:

“Per Ardua ad Astra” — “Through Struggle to the Stars” — is the motto of Britain’s Royal Air Force, but it could have been coined for Jack Perkowski’s car-parts company.

In “Managing the Dragon: How I’m Building a Billion-Dollar Business in China” (Crown Business, $27.50), Perkowski recounts his many setbacks as he developed his firm, ASIMCO Technologies, into a major player in China’s cut-throat automotive industry.

That the former Yale football scholar succeeded in the face of rampant fraud, obstructionism and incompetence entitles him to be heard.

Alan went on to summarize many of the points that I made about China and doing business in the country, accurately reflecting all that I wrote.

Finally, Christopher Gait, Oracle Infogram editor, topped off the week on Sunday with the following:

Business in China: The Art of Dragon Management

Jack Perkowski, a Wall Street wunderkind who started a Chinese company in 1990 (not an American company in China, mind you, a Chinese company in China), has come out with a book: Managing the Dragon. It’s already collected a rave review from the China Law Blog, one of the best authorities on Chinese business out there.

I am thankful to all who have read and enjoyed the book, but realize that all of the reviews may not be as positive as the ones I have received so far. There will be those who may take exception to what I say in the book and disagree with my observations and conclusions. On this one, I am with Alex Berenson. Knowing that Managing the Dragon is being read, and that readers are taking the time to comment on it, is its own reward.