PositiveThe Wall Street JournalMr. Wasserstrom, a professor of history at the University of California, Irvine, offers a vivid narrative of Hong Kong \'on the brink.\' He is perhaps strongest when he puts the protests into historical context. Beyond making the standard comparisons to Tibet and the struggles of the Uighurs in Xinjiang, he hears in Hong Kong’s current conflict echoes of events in China over the past century ... For all its merits, Vigil feels premature. Mr. Wasserstrom says that he finished his text in early October 2019. It is true that by then the government had promised to withdraw the extradition bill, which it did in late October, but even by the author’s own observation the protest campaign seemed nowhere near to expiring. Indeed, it continues to rage. What is more, darker impulses have emerged in the past few months.
