|
|
Biography | - 14 items found in your search |
Biography Click on Title to view full description |
|
|
|
|
1 |
Black, George Black Hands of Beijing: Lives of Defiance in China's Democracy Movement
New York John Wiley & Sons 0471579777 / 9780471579779 Hardcover
From Publishers Weekly: After the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989, China's communist leaders scapegoated black hands, individuals portrayed as sinister conspirators who supposedly manipulated the masses. Based on scores of interviews with participants in China's democracy movement, this dramatic, absorbing chronicle interweaves the lives of three black hands. Activist Wang Juntao and social scientist Chen Ziming edited a moderate protest journal and led a think tank that unsuccessfully tried to mediate the conflict between student protesters and the Communist Party. Falsely accused of masterminding the Tiananmen rally, they are serving long prison terms. Han Dongfang, bold speechmaker at Tiananmen Square, organized communist China's first independent trade union. Tortured in prison, he was recently released and came to the U. S. For medical treatment. Black, foreign affairs columnist for the Los Angeles Times , and Munro, China specialist for Human Rights Watch, provide an invaluable glimpse of the regime's methods of repression and of clandestine opposition groups still operating deep underground. : Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. : From Library Journal: Black and Munro's account of the 1989 democracy movement uses segments of dialog between China's best-known reformers--in particular, Wang Juntao, Chen Ziming, and Han Dongfang--to render a surreal picture of life outside the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) structure, branded as a black hand. The authors, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times and a China specialist for Human Rights Watch, respectively, claim to represent reality, albeit from the points of view of the black hands. The implicit messages are identified quite easily. First, the reformers preached moderation and encouraged the CCP to adopt a civil justice system. Second, because of an inability to smash the rice bowl, Deng Xiaoping and the CCP were more threatened by workers than students. Third, the democracy movement was affected profoundly by outside influences. The authors graphically describe how dissidents are treated in prison and note the consistent control of individuals in Chinese society. The book reads like fiction despite the authors' impressive research. Recommended. : - Peggy Spitzer Christoff, Oak Park, Ill. : Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Robert L. Bernstein Bks. ; 400 pages
Price:
24.95 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3 |
Byron, John The Claws of the Dragon: Kang Sheng - the Evil Genius Behind Mao - and His Legacy of Terror in People's China
New York Simon & Schuster 0671695371 / 9780671695378 First Edition Hardcover
From Publishers Weekly: Based on material smuggled out of the People's Republic, this is a first-class biography of Mao's hatchet man, China's counterpart to Stalin's Beria. Kang Sheng (1898-1975) was the godfather of the 1960s-1970s Cultural Revolution, during which hundreds of thousands of Chinese were slaughtered in the name of land reform and other exercises in social engineering. Byron and Pack describe how Kang's obsession with power drove him to betray his high-level comrades until, near the end of his life, he effected a masterpiece of treachery against Mao's former wife, Jiang Qing, Kang's closest associate and longtime protegee. He charged her with treason. The authors' detailed indictment of Kang is devastating: they contend that he transformed China into a world of cruelty bereft of almost every trace of human sympathy. Portrait of a major historical monster whose legacy is still evident in the People's Republic, this is crucial reading for students of modern China. Byron is the pseudonym of a veteran Western diplomat; Pack coauthored Speaking Out with Larry Speakes. : Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. : From Library Journal: Kang was China's equivalent to the Soviet Union's Beria, internal security chief and master spy. By the nature of his work--political intrigue, assassination, murder--the covert life of a man like Kang does not easily yield its details to a biographer. But Byron (pseudonym of a Western diplomat stationed in Beijing) and collaborator Pack have overcome the obstacles to write a masterful study of Chairman Mao Tse-Tung's evil genius. While the plotting, treachery, shifting alliances, and sexual entanglements make for a gripping tale, this book is far more than a spy thriller. Byron knows China's history, its politics, language, and ways, and this sure familiarity with the broader background gives the book a solid ring of authenticity. The book reprises much of the same territory as Roger Failgot and Remi Kauffer's The Chinese Secret Service (Morrow, 1989) , a competent book by non-China specialists. The Claws of the Dragon is clearly the better book. Recommended to specialists and general readers, though the latter may find the cast of characters--hundreds of them--daunting. : - John H. Boyle, California State Univ. , Chico: Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.; 560 pages
Price:
12.52 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4 |
Chien, Helen Hsieh (translator) The European Diary of Hsieh Fucheng: Envoy Extraordinary of Imperial China
New York St. Martin's Press 031207946X / 9780312079468 First Edition Hardcover
From Library Journal&newline; Hsieh Fucheng (1838-90) was one of the officials of Imperial China who tried to reform Chinese government and society. A number of Hsieh's ideas on reform are outlined in this edited journal, as are some of his diplomatic accomplishments while he served as envoy to Europe, but what makes this diary fascinating is its view of Western culture from an outsider's position. For example, Hsieh notes that Christianity is much like Confucianism, but the Old and New Testaments &doublequote; are filled with tales of superstition so incredible that even a small child cannot believe them to be the truth. &doublequote; This first English-language publication of Hsieh's diary, translated by his great-granddaughter and introduced and annotated by Douglas Howland (history, DePaul Univ. ) , should be in academic and large public libraries with strong Chinese history collections. &newline; - Dennis L. Noble, Lewistown P. L. , Mont. &newline; Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.; 224 pages
Price:
85.00 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
5 |
Frolic Mao-S People : Sixteen Portraits of Life in Revolutionary China
Harvard University Press 0674548450 / 9780674548459 Paperback
ABOUT THE BOOK: Mao's People: Sixteen Portraits of Life in Revolutionary China: FROM THE PUBLISHER: The sixteen stories collected in this remarkable book give firsthand accounts of daily life in contemporary China. From 250 interviews conducted in Hong Kong between 1972-1976, Frolic has created vignettes that show how individuals from all parts of China led their lives in the midst of rapid social change and political unrest. ; 278 pages
Price:
24.50 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
6 |
Kidd, David Peking Story: the Last Days of Old China
New York Three Rivers Press 0517567121 / 9780517567128 First Edition Paperback
From School Library Journal: YA Peking from 1946 to 1950 becomes a remarkable experience when viewed through the eyes of a young exchange student. Kidd arrived there just after his graduation from college and 2 months before his 20th birthday. There are fascinating descriptions of an ancient society on the verge of ending and the drastic changes that the communists bring when they take over the government. Kidd's position was unique. In his four years in Peking he taught English at a local university, became a part of the European circle of people who had settled in Peking, and married a spirited daughter of a high Chinese official. His stories about his wife's family are particularly touching and revealing because they went from positions of high esteem and privilege to having to learn to survive under the communists. Their palatial ancestral home had to be sold, and Elder Sister was given the ignoble task of house mother in a closed brothel. Increasing restrictions and David's detainment and arrest on two occasions added to the fear and uncertainty of their lives. Today Kidd retains his ties with the Far East. His marriage did not survive, but it is clear that the family retains a relationship with him of respect and affection. The story of their lives is strong and full of human interest. Barbara Weathers, Duchesne Academy, Houston: Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. : Book Description: For two years before and after the 1948 Communist Revolution, David Kidd lived in Peking, where he married the daughter of an aristocratic Chinese family. I used to hope, he writes, that some bright young scholar on a research grant would write about us and our Chinese friends before it was too late and we were all dead and gone, folding into the darkness the wonder that had been our lives. Here, Kidd himself brings that wonder to life in a luminous evocation of an ancient and beautiful - but doomed - way of life. --This text refers to the : : Paperback: edition.; A Griffin Paperback; 207 pages
Price:
10.88 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
9 |
Salisbury, Harrison E. The New Emperors: China in the Era of Mao and Deng
Boston Little Brown & Co 0316809101 / 9780316809108 First Edition Hardcover
From Publishers Weekly: Salisbury's crowning achievement, this incredibly vivid, gripping dual biography of China's two modern emperors--Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping--is also a revelatory history of modern China's transformation. As Mao's young lieutenant, Red Army commander Deng (b. 1904) led the Long March that cost Chiang Kaishek one million men. Although Deng tirelessly fought for Mao's political viewpoints, Mao (1892-1976) during his dementia of the 1970s ousted his acolyte, subjecting Deng to torture, imprisonment and exile. Mao believed himself infallible. His hero was China's first emperor, barbaric Qin, who slaughtered Chinese by the hundreds of thousands. Deng, at heart a small dragon, not a supreme dragon like Mao, is nevertheless another absolutist emperor. Drawing on years of travel, interviews and research in China, Salisbury ( Tiananmen Diary ) provides countless new details on key events. Among Salisbury's findings: Mao was excluded from the initial planning of the Korean War, which took him by surprise; Deng played a major role in Mao's brutal anti-rightist campaign of 1958. This epic double portrait deserves to become a classic. Photos. : Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. : From Library Journal: After writing a dozen or more memorable books on the history of Russian communism, veteran New York Times writer Salisbury turned his attention to China about ten years ago. A consummate reporter, Salisbury knows when he has a good story, and this book is brimming with good stories about the personalities, intrigues, and conflicting aims of Mao Tse-Tung and his successor. No other Western journalist has mastered the China story as expertly as Salisbury. He uses his rich background knowledge and privileged access to a wide array of Chinese leaders to write a fascinating insider's history of events that are sometimes epic and sometimes anecdotal but always related with style and depth. This is a wonderful introduction to China's current situation--and how it got there. A helpful guide to the cast of characters is included. For general and informed lay readers. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 10/1/91.: - John H. Boyle, California State Univ. , Chico: Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.; 544 pages
Price:
3.00 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
10 |
Spence, Jonathan D. Emperor of China
New York Knopf 0394488350 / 9780394488356 Hardcover
Book Description: A remarkable re-creation of the life of K'ang-hsi, emperor of the Manchu dynasty from 1661-1772, assembled from documents that survived his reign. Illustrations, notes, bibliography, index. --This text refers to the : : Paperback: edition. : Language Notes: Text: English, Chinese (translation) ; 1 pages
Price:
3.00 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
12 |
Thubron, Colin Behind the Wall: a Journey through China
New York Atlantic Monthly Pr 0871132427 / 9780871132420 First Edition Hardcover
From Publishers Weekly: Like a classical Chinese scroll, this book follows a meandering, atmospheric course through China's landscape. Thubron ( Where Nights Are Longest: Travels by Car Through Western Russia ) rambles from exuberant urban centers like Canton and Shanghai through intensively tilled farmlands to such lesser-known sites as the elegant canal city of Suzhou and through countless small towns and villages. With impressionistic color, vitality and immediacy, he creates images that linger in memory: monks performing a nocturnal candlelit ritual for the dead; Mao's birthplace, once thronged with Chinese pilgrims, now eerily deserted; the flamboyant beauty of tribal nomads. A fluent speaker of Mandarin, Thubron often breaks cultural barriers, talking candidly with and even visitng the homes of the people he encounters. Most express contentment with the relatively relaxed policies of their government, and their aspirations are openly materialistic. The author also visited a prison, a hospital, an art school where only Ming-dynasty painting is taught (as though whole Western academies were to devote themselves to the style of Giotto . . . ) . The overall impression is of a pragmatic, complex people, engaged in a quiet stampede toward capitalism, rediscovering parts of their past and ready to forge their own future. : Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. : From Library Journal: After studying Mandarin so that he could communicate, Thubron traveled extensively on his own to many of the less visited (but no less interesting) places in China. Displaying a knack for recording conversations with the ordinary people he met on trains and in monasteries, Thubron is both perceptive and nonjudgmental. His book, reminiscent of Mark Salzman's Iron & Silk ( LJ 2/1/87) , is less touristy than those of Paul Theroux and other travel writers. A top choice in a crowded field; for both public and academic libraries. Literary Guild alternate. Harold M. Otness, Southern Oregon State Coll. Lib. , Ashland: Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Travel Ser. ; 306 pages
Price:
10.25 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
13 |
Wu, Harry Bitter Winds : a Memoir of My Years in China's Gulag
New York Wiley 0471556459 / 9780471556459 First Edition Hardcover
Amazon.com: In April 1960, Chinese Communist authorities arrested Harry Wu, the son of a well-to-do Shanghai banker. He was cast into a prison camp and, though never formally charged or tried, he spent the next nineteen years in a hellish netherworld of grinding labor, systematic starvation, and torture. Bitter Winds is the powerful story of Harry Wu's imprisonment and survival, of extraordinary acts of courage, and of unforgettable heroism. --This text refers to the : Paperback edition. : From Publishers Weekly: In this eloquent memoir, Wu recalls his 19 years in Chinese labor camps. Though a middle-class college student, he was initially a patriotic Communist, but he soon ran afoul of the thought police. Hoping to flee the country in 1959, he was denounced as an enemy of the revolution. The book, written with Wakeman, coauthor of To the Storm: The Odyssey of a Revolutionary Chinese Woman , focuses primarily on Wu's first decade as a prisoner struggling against starvation, seeing others succumb and learning a brutal survival ethic from fellow inmates. It is an intimate story of bravery and tragedy, including details about hallucinations, torture and the loss of comrades. The Cultural Revolution led to Wu's transfer to a mine, where he stayed for 10 years. There, he began to carve out a life, marrying a woman who later betrayed him. Six years after his release in 1979, he left for the U. S. , where he is now a resident scholar at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. An epilogue briefly describes Wu's continuing heroism: in 1991, he returned to China and surreptitiously filmed labor camps for the TV program 60 Minutes. : Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.; 290 pages
Price:
35.00 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
14 |
Yang, Belle Baba: a Return to China Upon My Father's Shoulders
New York Harcourt 0151000638 / 9780151000630 Hardcover
Amazon.com: Baba is Papa in Chinese, and Belle Yang's Baba, Joseph Yang, was born in Manchuria in 1928. Belle set out to preserve her father's memories of coming of age in Northern China through painting and writing. The result is this illustrated odyssey of the fourth of seven children in the House of Yang, a prominent Manchurian family, whose experiences of the Japanese occupation, the Russian onslaught upon northeastern China, and the ensuing Chinese civil war make for a spellbinding tale. --This text refers to the : Paperback edition. : From Publishers Weekly: Born in Taiwan, writer/painter Yang, who emigrated to the U. S. With her parents in 1962 at age 10, wondrously evokes-in words and paintings-the Manchuria of the 1930s and '40s, where her father, Joseph Yang (Baba) , grew up during the Japanese invasion and brutal occupation. Twenty-three of her vibrant, lush watercolors accompany an appealing folktale-like narrative, which conjures a traditional world of supernatural beliefs, household deities, burdensome Confucian propriety, joyful festivals and a family rent by jealousies and quibbling. Filtered through the author's crystalline prose steeped in family legends and her father's detailed memories of China, the harsh repression of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo, the methodical Soviet looting after Manchukuo's collapse in 1945 and the ensuing civil war, chaos and starvation seem like violations of cosmic harmony. Author tour. : Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.; 211 pages
Price:
27.95 USD
|
|
Add to Shopping Cart
|
|
|
|
