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1/ My 2020 top 10. Not published this year, but ones I read. Each work marks a significant contribution to its respective fields, and I greatly admire these scholars' efforts and erudition. (in alphabetical order)
Beautiful ethnography. Focusing on sounded practices, @Rachel_A_Harris shows that the sometimes contradictory incorporation of religious practices does not suggest shifting sectarian loyalty but reflects indigenous attempts to define modernity https://iupress.org/9780253050205/soundscapes-of-uyghur-islam/
Powerful account on how white (proto-)Americans appropriated native cultures as they carved out national IDs. Captivating discussion on the cultural power of Native Peoples which both perpetuates marginalization yet provides a source of exceptionalism. https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300080674/playing-indian
Sophisticated analysis. Charlene Makley theorizes the politics of “being” among Tibetans in Repgong showing how presence is the result of sometimes tumultuous negotiations of the powers exerted by local, state, and deific actors. https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501719677/the-battle-for-fortune/#bookTabs=1
Robert E. May traces the origins and deconstructs the myth of happy slave Christmases under bondage. Indeed, these “celebrations” (despite their portrayal in popular media of the time) were fraught with paternalism, fear, and violence. https://www.upress.virginia.edu/title/5317
If you want to understand how state "assistance" and dependence in XJ connect to policies throughout China, look no further. @jenjpan treatment of the targeted population 重点人口 is the best I’ve seen. https://global.oup.com/academic/product/welfare-for-autocrats-9780190087432?cc=us&lang=en&
Essential for understanding the global currents that shaped and shape CCP policy in #Xinjiang. @robertsreport convincingly shows why if you condemn the GWOT (and you should), you must also condemn the “People’s War on Terror” in China. https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691202181/the-war-on-the-uyghurs
Within the context of colonial projects, Ann Laura Stoler directs our attention to sex and gender as sites upon which class, race, and nationalism are built. An absolutely harrowing account of the colonial nurseries. https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520262461/carnal-knowledge-and-imperial-power
A meticulous study on CCP efforts (patient then violent) to incorporate the territories/peoples of Amdo into the PRC. @BennoWeiner’s study reveals why the Party still struggles to garner the loyalties of Tibetans. https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501749414/the-chinese-revolution-on-the-tibetan-frontier/
An intimate look into the varied experiences of Tibetans written by some of the most talented Tibetan authors—well-known and up-and-coming. Including @degewa, @jaynorbu, @tseringylama https://www.orbooks.com/catalog/old-demons-new-deities/
