Prof. Von Glahn is great! The class can certainly get a little boring at times, considering how long it is and the material is so foreign to most students. But, he tries his best to make it fun. He's also reasonable with the assignments and flexible with deadlines. I would recommend doing ~90% of the readings, taking some notes to participate in the discussions, writing your essays with clarity and substance, and asking him for help. My most important tip is to take a coffee/matcha/yerba mate to his class and you'll be able to function fine.

The class is basically reading and then discussing the reading among other students while the professor raises occasional questions.
Only two lectures the whole quarter.
Engaging stuff if you don't mind reading a book or two, but it's pretty obvious if you come to class without doing the work. Grading seems to be more based on the two essays than participation, though.