Review by Choice Review
Chronicling China's rapid economic transformation from the period following the death of Mao Zedong to the present era under Xi Jinping, Dikötter (history, Univ. of Hong Kong), author of the Samuel Johnson Prize--winning Mao's Great Famine (CH, Apr'11, 48-4585), cogently argues that "without political reform, market reform cannot exist." This account--based on rich source materials, including newspaper reports, approximately 600 documents from municipal and provincial archives, the secret diaries of Mao's personal secretary, and other primary documents--challenges assumptions about China's speedy, four-decade rise and its transformation from a reclusive agrarian economy into a global superpower. Dikötter's critical examination of the traditional narrative of modern China's ascent includes in-depth discussion of monetary and trade policies, industry and commerce, and culture and politics from 1976 to 2012. The book explores watershed moments in great detail and concludes that although China has become more open, relative to other nations, during the era of reform and opening up, it has done so only "barely." Dikötter's well-researched volume marks an important contribution to the literature on China's rise. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty. --Sam Boss, University of Connecticut
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
University of Hong Kong historian Dikötter (the People's Trilogy) debunks the myth of China's miracle economy in this expert study. He credits Deng Xiaoping's "Reform and Opening Up" program, which more than doubled industrial growth from 1983 to 1985, with helping to make China a superpower, but notes that "we do not know the true size of the economy, since no local government will report accurate numbers." He challenges claims that China's growth signals the country's march toward capitalism, pointing out that in a true capitalist economy, capital is subject to rules on rates of return and profit margins, while in China, capital is distributed by state banks to state-controlled enterprises and businesses operate based on meeting a production target, regardless of whether their goods sell or not. Analyzing the regimes of Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao, and Xi Jinping, Dikötter paints a picture of continuous market manipulation, including the fixing of exchange rates, the encouragement of intellectual property theft from foreign companies, and the use of child labor. He also documents the crushing of civilian unrest, the scapegoating of the West for economic problems, and the existence of a shadow banking system riddled with massive debts. Extensively researched and cogently argued, this is a must-read for China watchers. Agent: James Pullen, Wylie Agency. (Nov.)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
An expert on modern Chinese history examines its rapid rise following the Cultural Revolution. After Mao Zedong died in 1976, his misgoverned and largely impoverished nation began the greatest economic advance in history. Dikötter, chair of the humanities department at the University of Hong Kong and author of multiple books about Mao and the Cultural Revolution, chronicles this period. Many Western observers believe that Mao's death allowed China's rulers, led by the sensible Deng Xiaoping, to discard Marxism and welcome capitalism, leading to an explosion of prosperity. This is a myth, writes Dikötter, whose extensive reading in mainland archives, gimlet eye, and bestselling histories have made him a controversial figure among some Chinese scholars. The author argues that China's leaders dismiss Western ideas of democracy, proclaiming that, as Marxists, they serve the people; according to them, this makes China the world's most democratic nation. Mao remains a godlike figure, but his successors yearned to recover from his disastrous revolution. They believed that a top-down, disciplined command economy would fix things. Dikötter delivers an excellent, highly critical description of China's spectacular expansion that emphasizes banking, industrial policy, trade, and currency. He also shows how the country struggled initially because key positions in the finance arena went to party loyalists who lacked sufficient technical knowledge. With time, leaders learned from their mistakes, importing technology and investment from Western nations enraptured by the thought of more than 1 billion new customers and under the mistaken impression that China was "privatizing." All expressed horror when Chinese leaders slaughtered democratic reformers in Tiananmen Square and throughout China in 1989--and then quickly forgave them. At the time, writes the author, "the regime learned to appreciate the benefits of hostage diplomacy and the price of even a single dissident." Dikötter brilliantly recounts the defects of China's economic model and deplores its human rights record, but he is unable to explain why it continues to grow. A richly informative, disquieting history. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
