The Highest Exam: How The Gaokao Shapes China by

Benjamin Ross and Steven Amter tell the story of how the chemical industry, abetted by a compliant government, set loose a plague of pollution that began in the years before and directly following World War II, a plague that still lingers today

Neal Robinson's Discovering the Qur'an has now become a standard text-book, since it is an excellent resource for those who require a clear and accessible introductory text.

This book examines the effect of Covid-19 on loan loss provisions (LLPs) and earnings management of European banks. Specifically, the author analyzes how the high flexibility offered by prudential authorities and standard setters in the context of Covid-19 affects banks’ use of discretion when accounting for loan loss provisions. She finds that during Covid-19 banks use discretionary LLPs to a greater extent than before Covid-19. This trend is more evident for banks located in countries that have implemented strong containment measures as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, while banks tend to overstate LLPs at the beginning of the pandemic, they do, on average, understate them during 2021. Finally, examining the direction of earnings management the author finds that during Covid-19 banks use upward earnings management, whereas before Covid-19 they engage in downward earnings management.