Despite the growing volume of western commentary on the turn to the market in China’s media industries we still know surprisingly little about the impact of change on media work. Jianhua Yao’s detailed study of the publishing industry in Shanghai, one of the pivotal nodes in China’s knowledge economy, is a notable and welcome exception. Combining available data with questionnaire surveys and personal interviews, he unpicks the consequences of commercialization and globalization for the organization of work places, careers, and everyday lives, and explores the ways workers are responding and resisting. His analysis of the new knowledge precariat is a must-read for anyone interested in the transformation and future of creative labour in China.