Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • Asia's Cauldron

  • The South China Sea and the End of a Stable Pacific
  • By: Robert D. Kaplan
  • Narrated by: Michael Prichard
  • Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (18 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Asia's Cauldron

By: Robert D. Kaplan
Narrated by: Michael Prichard
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £15.99

Buy Now for £15.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

Over the last decade, the center of world power has been quietly shifting from Europe to Asia. With oil reserves of several billion barrels, an estimated 900 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, and several centuries' worth of competing territorial claims, the South China Sea in particular is a simmering pot of potential conflict. The underreported military buildup in the area where the Western Pacific meets the Indian Ocean means that it will likely be a hinge point for global war and peace for the foreseeable future.

In Asia's Cauldron, Robert D. Kaplan offers up a vivid snapshot of the nations surrounding the South China Sea, the conflicts brewing in the region at the dawn of the 21st century, and their implications for global peace and stability.

To understand the future of conflict in East Asia, Kaplan argues, one must understand the goals and motivations of its leaders and its people. Part travelogue, part geopolitical primer, Asia's Cauldron takes us on a journey through the region's boom cities and ramshackle slums: From Vietnam, where the superfueled capitalism of the erstwhile colonial capital, Saigon, inspires the geostrategic pretensions of the official seat of government in Hanoi, to Malaysia, where a unique mix of authoritarian Islam and Western-style consumerism creates quite possibly the ultimate postmodern society; and from Singapore, whose "benevolent autocracy" helped foster an economic miracle, to the Philippines, where a different brand of authoritarianism under Ferdinand Marcos led not to economic growth but to decades of corruption and crime.

At a time when every day's news seems to contain some new story - large or small - that directly relates to conflicts over the South China Sea, Asia's Cauldron is an indispensable guide to a corner of the globe that will affect all of our lives for years to come.

©2014 Robert D. Kaplan (P)2014 Tantor
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Monsoon cover art
The Revenge of Geography cover art
Bully of Asia cover art
The Anarchy cover art
Three Tigers, One Mountain cover art
Everything Under the Heavens cover art
The Weaponisation of Everything cover art
International Relations Theories cover art
North Korea and the World cover art
Invisible Countries cover art
The Return of Great Power Rivalry cover art
The Gates of Europe cover art
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution: 1763-1789 cover art
Understanding Power cover art
Worlds at War cover art
Six Months That Changed the World cover art

Critic reviews

"A riveting, multitextured look at an underexamined region of the world and, perhaps, at the 'anxious, complicated world' of the future." ( Booklist)

What listeners say about Asia's Cauldron

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    13
  • 4 Stars
    4
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    11
  • 4 Stars
    4
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    13
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very interesting analysis of SEA geopolitics

Well researched and easy to comprehend. Great writing and storytelling to boot. Of course as the author said it is only a period piece so much of it will not be relevant forever.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Heading

Narration was good and easy to follow.

in this books structure I particularly liked the way the region was broken down and discussed. it enabled one to focus on a country or area of personal interest with ease.
very enjoyable thank you.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good look at the realities of geopolitics in E.A

just ignore his subtle ideological biases (we all have our own). Overall a thorough, well presented and balance perspective on E and S.E Asian history, political motivations and pragmatic socio-economic realities. Well worth a read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good insights into South-East Asian geopolitics

The narrator has the exremely irritating habit of repeated mispronunciation, most noticeably of the words "Malay" and "Hokkien" as "may-lay" and "hoe-kee-en". This rapidly became very distracting (not to mention the abomination of names like Mahathir as Ma-ha-theer etc). It would behoove those reading these texts to spend a few minutes to find out how most, particularly those people themselves, pronounce these names in English (which generally matches the British pronounciation). One is left with the impression of complete ignorance of the subject matter under discussion.

The content itself was good and, other than pronunciation, well-read by the narrator.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!