false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1189888627m/1892349.jpg 52166 11 From humble beginnings in rural Hunan, Mao Zedong became the "Great Helmsman" of Communist China. By the time he died in 1976, he had profoundly changed the course of history. His increasingly erratic whims and graspings at a wild utopia destabilized his immense achievements, and he was ultimately responsible for the deaths of perhaps 60 million people. Jonathan Spence brings great erudition to the story of this flawed colossus. He is particularly enlightening on Mao's early years--it is nearly two-thirds through the book before Mao stands on the walls of the Forbidden City in October 1949 and declares the establishment of the People's Republic of China. The young revolutionary's infamous willfulness is soon apparent, yet Spence rounds out his character by, for example, quoting a poem to his beloved first wife and mentioning the profit he made from an early capitalist venture, a bookstore. <I>Mao Zedong</I> is excellent biography--and more. China was convulsed for nearly a century by almost constant war and revolution, and Spence uses the life of the man at the heart of so many historic events to elucidate the whole momentous epoch. In his many writings, Spence has proved a master at making complex themes easy to understand, and this compact book provides yet another example of his skills. <I>--John Stevenson</I> 765219 1999 Mao Zedong (A Penguin Life) total:105|5:12|4:31|3:48|2:14|1:0| 105 356 141 13 3 0 false true Fri Jun 26 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 26 00:10:44 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 26 05:55:30 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Oct 11 21:23:37 -0700 2009 Sun Oct 11 21:23:37 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Mon Sep 21 19:41:43 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 21 19:45:04 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Aug 17 07:24:02 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 17 07:25:43 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 10 09:51:35 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 25 10:33:02 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Oct 26 17:35:56 -0700 2007 Fri Oct 26 17:42:54 -0700 2007 more...]]> 0 0 false false Sat Aug 22 10:21:03 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 22 10:31:51 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sun May 27 21:15:39 -0700 2007 Sun May 27 21:19:59 -0700 2007 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed May 16 10:53:09 -0700 2007 Wed May 16 10:55:22 -0700 2007 3 0 true false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Dec 22 19:40:20 -0800 2007 Sat Dec 22 19:49:25 -0800 2007 4 0 false false Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1999 Sat Jul 21 15:52:20 -0700 2007 Sat Jul 21 15:53:25 -0700 2007 3 0 false false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Nov 20 03:38:40 -0800 2007 Fri Jan 11 02:39:52 -0800 2008 2 0 false false Tue Jul 14 10:44:07 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 14 10:52:37 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Nov 25 00:50:13 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 25 00:50:48 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Sun Nov 22 16:58:15 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 22 16:58:15 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Wed Nov 18 23:13:34 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 18 23:13:34 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Wed Oct 21 14:26:08 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 14:26:08 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Oct 15 23:16:57 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 15 23:16:57 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Oct 07 06:21:54 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 07 06:21:54 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Thu Sep 24 14:57:02 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 24 14:57:02 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=1892349