Paul French Books in Order
Paul French has written 27 books, published between 1998 and 2026. The first book is One Billion Shoppers (1998) and the newest is The Last Emperor of China: Twilight of the Forbidden City (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.
Isaac Asimov books in order are published under that pen name.
- Books
- 27
- Published
- 1998–2026
- Pages on record
- 3,371 in 14 of 27 books
- Reading time
- 56–84 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 3,371 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 14 of 27 titles with a page count on record.
Paul French writes history and social history, with China and North Korea as the recurring subjects. The catalogue holds 27 books published between 1998 and 2026. One Billion Shoppers (1998) opens it, and North Korea: The Paranoid Peninsula (2005) and Carl Crow, a Tough Old China Hand (2006) follow. Midnight in Peking and Badlands: Decadent Playground of Old Peking share a 2012 date, and The Last Emperor of China: Twilight of the Forbidden City is listed for 2026. Subject tags name Shanghai, Beijing, crime in China, and North Korean politics and economic conditions.
How many Paul French books are there?
Paul French has 27 books, released between 1998 and 2026.
Paul French Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 27 Paul French books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 1One Billion Shoppers1998 · 304 pages · confirmed 1/419983041/4
- 2North Korea: The Paranoid Peninsula - A Modern History2005 · 334 pages · confirmed 1/420053341/4
- 3Carl Crow, a Tough Old China Hand: The Life, Times, and Adventures of an American in Shanghai2006 · confirmed 1/42006–1/4
- 4Through the Looking Glass2009 · 312 pages · confirmed 1/420093121/4
- 5Oil on Water: Tankers, Pirates and the Rise of China2010 · 208 pages · confirmed 1/420102081/4
- 6Fat China: How Expanding Waistlines Are Changing a Nation2010 · 224 pages · confirmed 1/420102241/4
- 7The Old Shanghai A–Z2010 · 252 pages · confirmed 1/420102521/4
- 8Midnight in Peking2012 · 260 pages · confirmed 1/420122601/4
- 9Badlands: Decadent Playground of Old Peking2012 · 84 pages · confirmed 1/42012841/4
- 10The Badlands: More Stories from Midnight in Peking2012 · confirmed 1/42012–1/4
- 11Ding2013 · confirmed 1/42013–1/4
- 1220144801/4
- 13Betrayal in Paris2014 · 104 pages · confirmed 1/420141041/4
- 14Our Supreme Leader: The Making of Kim Jong-un2016 · confirmed 1/42016–1/4
- 15Man’s Fate – Andre Malraux’s Shanghai of the Absurd2016 · confirmed 1/42016–1/4
- 16Gypsies of Shanghai2016 · confirmed 1/42016–1/4
- 17"Peking is Like Paris"2016 · confirmed 1/42016–1/4
- 18My Kind of Crime: Reviews for The Life Sentence2016 · confirmed 1/42016–1/4
- 19Censoring Lady Chatterley in Shanghai2017 · confirmed 1/42017–1/4
- 20Destination Shanghai2018 · 296 pages · confirmed 1/420182961/4
- 21City of Devils: The Two Men Who Ruled the Underworld of Old Shanghai2018 · 299 pages · confirmed 1/420182991/4
- 22Bloody Saturday2018 · 118 pages · confirmed 1/420181181/4
- 23Murders of Old China2019 · confirmed 1/42019–1/4
- 24Strangers on the Praia: A Tale of Refugees and Resistance in Wartime Macao2021 · 96 pages · confirmed 1/42021961/4
- 25Destination Peking2022 · confirmed 1/42022–1/4
- 26Her Lotus Year2024 · confirmed 1/42024–1/4
- 27The Last Emperor of China: Twilight of the Forbidden City2026 · confirmed 1/42026–1/4
Paul French books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.
Asian Arguments in order
1 bookStandalone books
26 books26 Paul French titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Paul French books in order?
No. No source lists any of the 27 Paul French books here as part of a series. The numbered table above gives them by publication date.
Where to start with Paul French
Start with One Billion Shoppers (1998), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Paul French book?
The Last Emperor of China: Twilight of the Forbidden City (2026) is the newest Paul French book released so far.
Is there a new Paul French book coming?
No next Paul French book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Paul French at a glance
- Still publishing
- Paul French published a book as recently as 2026.
- Release pace
- Paul French books have appeared about one a year on average.
- Length
- 3,371 pages across the 14 of 27 books with a recorded length, a median of 256 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Paul French books, 19 of 27, were published in the 2010s.
What the Paul French books are about
13 of the 27 Paul French books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: history is tagged on 7 of 13. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- History 7 of 13 books
- China, history 3 of 13 books
- Social conditions 3 of 13 books
- Social life and customs 3 of 13 books
- Beijing (china), history 2 of 13 books
- Crime, china 2 of 13 books
- Korea (north), economic conditions 2 of 13 books
- Korea (north), history 2 of 13 books
- Korea (north), politics and government 2 of 13 books
- Manners and customs 2 of 13 books
- Politics and government 2 of 13 books
- Shanghai (china) 2 of 13 books