Another week, another book from the prolific Shanghai indie publisher Earnshaw Books. This time: Tales of Old Hong Kong, written and edited by Earnshaw Books' head staffer, Derek Sandhaus, who also wrote Tales of Old Beijing, the second in the 'Tales' series after Shanghai.

The series does what every Lonely Planet, Rough Guide, Time Out guidebook doesn't – it finds that ineffable allure of a place, which is invariably shrouded in local history, which, in the case of Hong Kong, is miles deep. Did you know, for instance, that mischievous British journalists at The Star newspaper created an epidemic in the 1960s by reporting on the real psychological disorder Koro, which was said to cause the victim to believe his penis was shriveling up and disappearing?

The famous book publisher is betting its future in China on locals reading English

China may not have saved the world from economic Armageddon, but it has helped one of the world’s oldest publishers maintain a steady growth rate in China over the last year.

British publisher Penguin has ridden out the economic downturn and consequent diminished buying habits among expats thanks to the strength of its market among local Chinese readers of English.

It's the age of the memoir – these days everyone is writing a book it seems. Jordan has written four of them for Christ's sake – two for each breast. We can't take much more of it.

So here's a novel idea (lame pun intended) – instead of writing a book, how about cooking one? The Shanghai Literary Festival is hosting the Shanghai chapter of books2eat, which is part of the International Edible Book Festival, celebrated annually around the world. The goal is to create a book from anything edible – cake, chocolate, cabbage or cheese – as long as the resulting creation resembles a book in form, or takes its inspiration from a book title, character or pivotal scene in the book.

As author James Kynge says on the back cover of this book: "Business fads come and go but the Tao is forever." So, whether you're starting a small business, or in a big company and struggling to navigate the labyrinthine pathways of doing of business in China, Ansgar Gerstner's new book, The Tao of Business, is for you. Gerstner argues that from a strategic point of view, the Daodejing – the classic Taoist text – can offer answers for many of the issues in modern business management. Based part-time in Shanghai, Gerstner is a martial arts trainer and expert in Taoist philosophy with a PhD in Chinese studies from Germany's Trier University. His interest in business, particularly management issues, stems from his conversations with friends in business and the topics he has encountered in training and coaching. We caught up with Dr. Gerstner below...

To celebrate their 5-year anniversary, Blue Fountain, China's largest importer of English-language books, has announced a cracking special promotion lasting until December 31:

* a whopping 50-90 percent off their 10,000 Shanghai in-stock English books

* free international shipping on their 600,000 US-stocked English books

BF's Frank Cai says, "You cannot find the deal anywhere in the world and basically we sell at a loss just to get the word around."

So, if you're stuck for a Chrimbo present ideas, stuff your stockings with cheap books.