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  • China After Mao: The Rise of a Superpower
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China After Mao: The Rise of a Superpower Kindle Edition

by Frank Dikötter (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 out of 5 stars 369 ratings
3.9 on Goodreads
924 ratings

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“A blow-by-blow account … An important corrective to the conventional view of China's rise.”--Financial Times

From internationally renowned historian Frank Dikötter, winner of the Samuel Johnson Prize, a myth­-shattering history of China from the death of Chairman Mao to Xi Jinping.

Through decades of direct experience of the People's Republic combined with extraordinary access to hundreds of hitherto unseen documents in communist party archives, the author of The People's Trilogy offers a riveting account of China's rise from the disaster of the Cultural Revolution. He takes us inside the country's unprecedented four-decade economic transformation--from rural villages to industrial metropoles and elite party conclaves--that vaulted the nation from 126th ­largest economy in the world to second ­largest. A historian at the pinnacle of his field, Dikötter challenges much of what we think we know about how this happened. Casting aside the image of a society marching unwaveringly toward growth, in lockstep to the beat of the party drum, he recounts instead a fascinating tale of contradictions, illusions, and palace intrigue, of disasters narrowly averted, shadow banking, anti-corruption purges, and extreme state wealth existing alongside everyday poverty. He examines China's navigation of the 2008 financial crash, its increasing hostility towards perceived Western interference, and its development into a thoroughly entrenched dictatorship with a sprawling security apparatus and the most sophisticated surveillance system in the world. As this magisterial book makes clear, the communist party's goal was never to join the democratic world, but to resist it--and ultimately defeat it.
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  1. Print length
    565 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Bloomsbury Publishing
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    Nov. 15 2022
  6. File size
    31.0 MB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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From the Publisher

China After Mao, Frank Dikotter, The Guardian

China After Mao, Frank Dikotter, The Diplomatic Courier

China After Mao, Frank Dikotter, The Wall Street Journal

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Review

“Iconoclastic.” ―Wall Street Journal

“A clear-eyed and detailed account.” ―The Guardian

“A blow-by-blow account … An important corrective to the conventional view of China's rise.” ―Financial Times

“One of the most insightful and nuanced looks at the complex rise of China since the Second World War ... engrossing and riveting.” ―The Diplomatic Courier

“A skilled writer, Dikotter is accessible to both expert and lay readers alike.” ―The Washington Examiner

"Challenges assumptions about China's speedy, four-decade rise and its transformation from a reclusive agrarian economy into a global superpower . . . Dikötter's well-researched volume marks an important contribution to the literature on China's rise. Highly recommended." - Choice

“A compelling and informative account and analysis of Chinese history from the early 1970s to 2022 ... China After Mao is packed with intrigue and insight for the layperson and scholar alike” ―Shelf Awareness

“A revolutionary book.” ―Sunday Times

“Highly-readable.” ―New Statesman

“Dikötter delivers an excellent, highly critical description of China's spectacular expansion that emphasizes banking, industrial policy, trade, and currency … a richly informative, disquieting history.” ―Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“Dikötter (The People's Trilogy) debunks the myth of China's miracle economy in this expert study ...Extensively researched and cogently argued, this is a must-read for China watchers.” ―Publishers Weekly

“Whether he is pondering which came first, Party politics or economic policy, or navigating the slippery relationship between power, productivity and protest, Dikötter unpicks this most tangled web with admirable clarity.” ―South China Morning News

About the Author

Frank Dikötter is Chair Professor of Humanities at the University of Hong Kong and Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. His books have changed the way historians view China, from the classic The Discourse of Race in Modern China to his award-winning People's Trilogy documenting the lives of ordinary people under Mao. He lives in Hong Kong.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0B8HGRLN7
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bloomsbury Publishing
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ Nov. 15 2022
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ 1st
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 31.0 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 565 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1639730520
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • 鶹 Rank: #74,048 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 out of 5 stars 369 ratings

About the author

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Frank Dikötter

Frank Dikötter

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Frank Dikotter is the author of a dozen books that have changed the way we look at the history of modern China, including Mao's Great Famine, winner of the BBC Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction in 2011. His work has been translated into twenty languages, including The Tragedy of Liberation: A History of the Chinese Revolution 1945-1957, which was short-listed for the Orwell Prize in 2014, and The Cultural Revolution: A People's History, 1962-1976, the final volume in his trilogy on the Mao era. He is Chair Professor at the University of Hong Kong and Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. More information can be found on his website at www.frankdikotter.com

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
369 global ratings

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Top reviews from Canada

  • 鶹 Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars China Explained.
    Reviewed in Canada on June 20, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    A close up look at modern China and how it got that way. A good read.
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  • Michael
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read
    Reviewed in Canada on April 29, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    I enjoyed this book, especially the historical explanations. I would like to an update in 10 years to know where the story goes.
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Juan Luis Quintana
    1.0 out of 5 stars Relata las pugnas entre los lideres chinos
    Reviewed in Spain on November 4, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    Un libro que habla sobre la evolución en la trayectoria de los gobiernos chinos despues de Mao la revolución cultural. Es muy denso en cuanto a los entretejes politicos pero no habla en general de lo que representa el comunismo chino lleno de atrocidades y miserias. No entra con demasiado detalle sin embargo cuando cuenta como los campesinos se negaban a ir a trabajar a las factorias de las grandes ciudades y eran deportados allí a la fuerza, pues el pueblo sabía que los ponian allí para intereses politicos. Esto lo relata muy escuetamente. En mi opinión el libro adolece de esa critica que se resume solo a las pugnas entre altos cargos del politburo chino.
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  • Kindle Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic look at the post-Mao era and PRC's rise
    Reviewed in Australia on November 10, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Extremely well sourced and informative, it fills in many of the gaps most laypeople may have with China with clear and concise language.
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  • michael singer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very helpful and interesting history!
    Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Excellent overview of a very important time period in the history of China.
    Full of references supporting the facts and figures discussed!
    Though academic in orientation, a relatively easy read; the only difficulty I had was keeping track of the names of the many less-known figures in the narrative.
    An excellent volume for understanding the primary enemy of the U.S. at this time, and the most evil promoter of Communist ideology currently active on the world stage.
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  • Alan
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
    Reviewed in Germany on June 8, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    The book covers the plethora of Chinese regime's mis-steps, uncaring attitude to their people and the total ignorance of what it is to be human.....unless you are in the privileged yet ignorant elite.
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  • Jane
    5.0 out of 5 stars Love it!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 18, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Very detailed and well-researched.
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