Review of The China Shop

. . . "Fine" about China. This story opens with an unsuspecting shopkeeper posting a "Fine China" sign in the front window of his store. However, when he closes up for the night, a nefarious jade devil smashes most of his wares before being smashed to bits himself by the pendulum of a wall clock. Historically, China has always been entirely too fragile for dependable service, United Nations membership or keeping control of its own citizens, minorities and borders. All it takes is a warship or two in the international Straits of Taiwan to put China's nose out of joint. THE CHINA SHOP shows that china should be relegated to the trash heap of history, with the few remaining intact pieces being relabeled as "rare antiques" and relegated to locked cabinets.