How China and the US will shape our lives

Gaze into the crystal ball with British political scientist Robin Niblett and take some lessons on collaboration in teams to streamline your business, then relax with two novels! By Patricia McCracken.

The New Cold War: How the Contest Between the US and China Will Shape our Century by Robin Niblett (Atlantic Books, R370)

In ancient Greece there was the Oracle of Delphi. Today there is the Chatham House think tank in London. Both set out to do the impossible: predict the future. As any historian will tell you, it is changing circumstances that make the future unpredictable. That said, Chatham House’s Robin Niblett is a modern oracle whose logical and wellwritten book is like a 101 political science textbook. He selects 10 differences between today’s Cold War and the last one, when the West faced the USSR. Niblett argues that this time the West’s main protagonist is China, a different kettle of fish from the old Soviets and the saga will play out differently because the US and China are changing rapidly. However, the elephant in the room is Russia: anyone who imagines that Russia is not going to have its say in the 21st century should take a long holiday – perhaps to Delphi.

The Collaboration Book by Mikael Krogerus and Roman Tschäppeler (Profile, R350)

In a pocket-sized handbook of 170 pages, Krogerus and Tschäppeler cram together “41 ideas for working better together” culled from a wide range of studies. Most people will first ponder the surprising variety of approaches presented to 21st-century teambuilding. Some are expected, such as the emphasis on agility. Some are variations on a theme, such as ‘red teaming’ and the use of a devil’s advocate, aimed at pinpointing gaps and faults in systems and products. Keeping teams small is advice that seems to have bypassed most of the corporate world but is, of course, useful in small business and entrepreneurial sectors. But it’s dealing with the interplay between team members and how it affects outcomes that is often the most challenging aspect to handle, and there’s everything from how to handle feedback to why to choose consent over consensus.

Gas Light by Femi Kayode (Raven Books, R405)

In Nigeria’s buzzing capital, Lagos, forensic psychologist Philip Taiwo is lecturing at the police college, bringing home skills he learnt in San Francisco. His twin sister calls on him to help out as a private detective at Grace Church, where the wife of its leader, Bishop Jeremiah Dawodu, has gone missing and the bishop’s been arrested. The scandal is the biggest sensation in town but the bishop seems to have an unassailable alibi. After his wife’s dead body is found in a lake and carefully timed revelations stir the headlines, setting investigators running in circles, it’s clear a mastermind is directing the action. Meanwhile Taiwo’s family is threatened from without by someone associated with the case and from within by harsh peer pressure on their teenage daughter. It all makes for a fast-moving, persuasive crime thriller set in a richly portrayed context. This is Taiwo’s second outing but a first for me, a deficit I intend to make up.

The Catch by Amy Lea (Penguin, R245)

Some book covers evoke a mood; this one summarises the heart of the novel. At a glance, you see a smalltown coastal setting, Evan, a dedicated fisherman in a checked flannel shirt (which fortunately happens to be having a fashion moment again right now) and Melanie, a city girl and social-media influencer in snappy, highheeled boots and a sexy dress. Unfortunately, she refuses to realise how inadequate it will be to protect her on deck in a boat in a squall. When Evan’s hospitalised miles away after trying to keep her safe, she pretends to be his fiancée to keep him company even though it was antipathy at first sight when they’d met. Pulled into the close network of small-town life, Melanie also takes to heart the bitter division in Evan’s family over whether to save the family business. But her own handsoff adoptive mother hadn’t prepared her for spending time in an often hilariously unbalanced family group.