Summary | Excerpt | Reviews | Beyond the book | Read-Alikes | Genres & Themes | Author Bio
From the book jacket:
Based on a decade of research and on
interviews with many of Mao's close circle
in China who have never talked before and
with virtually everyone outside China who
had significant dealings with him this is
the most authoritative life of Mao ever
written. It is full of startling
revelations, exploding the myth of the Long
March, and showing a completely unknown Mao:
he was not driven by idealism or ideology;
his intimate and intricate relationship with
Stalin went back to the 1920s, ultimately
bringing him to power; he welcomed Japanese
occupation of much of China; and he schemed,
poisoned and blackmailed to get his way.
After Mao conquered China in 1949, his
secret goal was to dominate the world. In
chasing this dream he caused the deaths of
38 million people in the greatest famine in
history. In all, well over 70 million
Chinese perished under Mao's rule in
peacetime.
Comment: Jung Chang's
family memoir,
Wild Swans, was
published in 1991 (two years after the
Tiananmen Square massacre, at a time when people in the West were hungry for information about China) and went on to become
the biggest grossing non-fiction paperback
in publishing history, selling more than 10
million copies worldwide and being
translated into 30 languages, transforming
Chang from a life of extraordinary hardship
to literary stardom almost overnight.
After the success of Wild Swans, many would
have rested on their laurels, perhaps
churning out a follow up memoir or two.
Not Chang; instead, she and her husband,
historian Jon Halliday, took advantage of
the financial independence provided by the
success of Wild Swans to focus the
next ten years of their lives on a book
about Chairman Mao - a book that they
believe reveals the true
character of the man who ruled China for 27
years.
"Seventy million killed at the absolute minimum. We didn't even count people like my grandmother's death - which should really be on Mao's account. That figure only includes people who were murdered by Mao - and in peace time, which is completely unprecedented in the history of the world." - Jung Chang.
"We want people to understand it; we didn't want to write a book for our peers, for other historians. We want the general reader to know about Mao." - John Halliday.
"Ever since the spectacular success of Chang's Wild Swans we have waited impatiently for her to complete with her husband this monumental study of China's most notorious modern leader. The expectation has been that she would rewrite modern Chinese history. The wait has been worthwhile and the expectation justified. This is a bombshell of a book." - Chris Patten, the last governor of Hong Kong, writing in The London Times.
This review was originally published in The BookBrowse Review in October 2005, and has been updated for the December 2006 edition. Click here to go to this issue.
This review is available to non-members for a limited time. For full access become a member today.If you liked Mao, try these:
An indelible exploration of the invisible scar that runs through the heart of Chinese society and the souls of its citizens.
Spellbinding, unforgettable, and an important chronicle of modern China, The Bathing Women is a powerful and beautiful portrait of the strength of female friendship in the face of adversity.
The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu
Debut novelist Wenyan Lu brings us this witty yet profound story about one woman's midlife reawakening in contemporary rural China.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.