Awards

• Long-listed for Baifang Schell China Books Prize 2025 (United States)
• Winner of Phi Alpha Theta Best Subsequent Book Award 2024 (United States)

Overview

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9780674659582

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Reviews

A must-read. Chen Jian's book illuminates Zhou Enlai's life from the earliest years to his final days with nuance, empathy, and scholarly depth. Along the way, he also tells the breathtaking story of Zhou's China. This is a rare work of history shot through with the lived experience, and even occasional pensiveness, of an eminent authority on twentieth-century China.--Sergey Radchenko, author of Two Suns in the Heavens At last, Zhou Enlai has the full-dress biography he deserves, one that uses rich documentary evidence to make an objective assessment of his enduring influence on twentieth-century China as well as the world. This is a profoundly important work of history.--Rana Mitter, author of China's Good War: How World War II Is Shaping a New Nationalism Chen Jian's Zhou Enlai compellingly documents the whims, illusions, and eccentricities of Mao Zedong. I know of no better account of the arbitrary nature--but also the consequent waste--of authoritarian rule.--John Lewis Gaddis, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning George F. Kennan: An American Life Communist China resembles a labyrinth. This brilliant study of Zhou Enlai's life has given us a key and a map to understand it. A masterpiece and a must-read for anyone who cares about China and its impact on the world.--Xu Guoqi, author of Chinese and Americans: A Shared History

Chen Jian’s Zhou Enlai compellingly documents the whims, illusions, and eccentricities of Mao Zedong. I know of no better account of the arbitrary nature—but also the consequent waste—of authoritarian rule. -- John Lewis Gaddis, author of the Pulitzer Prize–winning <i>George F. Kennan: An American Life</i> A must-read. Chen Jian’s book illuminates Zhou Enlai’s life from the earliest years to his final days with nuance, empathy, and scholarly depth. Along the way, he also tells the breathtaking story of Zhou’s China. This is a rare work of history shot through with the lived experience, and even occasional pensiveness, of an eminent authority on twentieth-century China. -- Sergey Radchenko, author of <i>Two Suns in the Heavens: The Sino-Soviet Struggle for Supremacy, 1962–1967</i> At last, Zhou Enlai has the full-dress biography he deserves, one that uses rich documentary evidence to make an objective assessment of his enduring influence on twentieth-century China as well as the world. This is a profoundly important work of history. -- Rana Mitter, author of <i>China’s Good War: How World War II Is Shaping a New Nationalism</i> Communist China resembles a labyrinth. This brilliant study of Zhou Enlai’s life has given us a key and a map to understand it. A masterpiece and a must-read for anyone who cares about China and its impact on the world. -- Xu Guoqi, author of <i>Chinese and Americans: A Shared History</i>

Author Information

A leading scholar of the Cold War and the history of modern China, Chen Jian is Distinguished Global Network Professor of History at New York University and NYU Shanghai; Hu Shih Professor of History Emeritus at Cornell University; and Zijiang Distinguished Visiting Professor at East China Normal University.

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