This is the detailed story about how China during the Deng Xiaoping era was transformed from a socialist or quasi-socialist dictatorship to a capitalist dictatorship, but without giving up the socialist slogans. In the words of the author (pp. 492-3): "China today is experiencing, on a massive scale and in extreme forms, all the social evils of Western capitalism that modern Chinese intellectuals and political leaders sought for over a century to avoid. [...] That century-long quest now appears to have been all but abandoned. In the 1980s, China's leaders gradually reconciled themselves to enduring the vicissitudes of a capitalist regime-that "social anarchy which turns every economic progress into a social calamity," as Marx so acutely and forebodingly described the workings of capitalism." In my view, the book is very well written and well argued. Above all, it is free from the irritating Western bias that mar many books on China. Thus, the author more than once takes pains to explode myths about modern China, e.g. the popular impression that the Mao era was a period of economic stagnation (p. 188). But Meisner's story is in no sense the story about China's transformation from a socialist paradise to a capitalist hell. On the contrary, the book seems to me to be very balanced and credible. Recommended!

I bought this book largely on the recommendations of previous readers and because I was looking for an intelligent, thought-provoking history of Modern China. On the whole, the book is all these things, but it left me unsatisfied. It's a particular kind of historical review which in the final analysis I found wanting because it delivers very broad-stroke judgements based on evidence gleaned from a very small grouping of sources. Mr. Meisner analyses modern Chinese history largely through the readings and actions of one man: Mao Zedong. Fair enough, given the title of the book. But it's almost as if no one else matters or had any impact whatsoever on what happened. The Chinese people are completely absent from this history, which is largely a history of Mao's shifting theoretical viewpoints. It may be true that the history of modern China is the history of one man's thought, but it wasn't until I got to the section dealing with Deng Xiaoping that I began to feel that I was reading a history of a people with a multitude of viewpoints and opinions. It may be an impossibility to know what actually went on in China from 1946 up to 1976 and that therefore all we have is Mao Zedong Thought, which may only be another way of saying that a history of Modern China has yet to be written.

As a whole, this an excellent text. Meisner exhibits an incredible knowledge and understanding of the tragic history of the PRC. As he takes the reader on an incredible exploration of the PRC's many vicissitudes,Meisner, despite being a historian by trade, consistenly gives the reader masterful economic and political analysis of the events that swept the "Middle Kingdom" during this last half-century. In addition to this, he dissects with precision the manifold conceptual arguments, theoretical polemics, and numerous speeches Mao offered to the people as to how and why these incredible changes could and should occur. Upon completion of it, I am definitely better versed on the myriad events that have shaped today's PRC. From China's revolutionary heritage all the way up to the rise of Deng, Meisner is consistently clear and captivating. His masterful use of economic, political, sociological, and historical analysis is impressive. He also demonstrates quite a knowledge of Marxist-Leninism and Maoism. However, at times I felt bogged down by it all, and honestly had to wonder how germane it truly is to the events that transpired. Yet, as a whole, I still have to conclude that this book is excellent and should be considered on of the key books for someone investigating contemporary China.

I am very glad I read this book (which Howard Zinn recommended to me). I feel I have a firm grasp of the basics of 20th Century Chinese history now. Meisner really takes an independent line: he doesn't just parrot Chinese or US propaganda. I feel he makes reasonable surmises about motivations and actions which are still unclear, given the secretive nature of the Chinese government. In all, one of the best history books I have ever read.