Thomas M. Larkin is assistant professor of the history of the United States of America and the world at the University of Prince Edward Island.
Through the microhistory of the Heards’ business in Hong Kong, The China Firm speaks to larger issues of global history. Bringing together solidly researched archival findings and applying cutting-edge techniques of digital humanities, Larkin explores the dynamic social and business networks of an enterprising New England trading house and its changing fortune within the British colonial framework. The story follows the worldly exploits of these American entrepreneurs who transcended political and geographical boundaries, all the while mindful of the local contexts that animated and confined their maneuvers. -- John D. Wong, author, <i>Hong Kong Takes Flight: Commercial Aviation and the Making of a Global Hub</i>