Overview

"No other narrative from within the corridors of power has offered as frank and intimate an account of the making of the modern Chinese nation as Ji Chaozhu's The Man on Mao's Right. Having served Chairman Mao Zedong and the Communist leadership for two decades, and having become a key figure in China's foreign policy, Ji now provides an honest, detailed account of the personalities and events that shaped today's People's Republic. The youngest son of a prosperous government official, nine-year-old Ji and his family fled Japanese invaders in the late 1930s, escaping to America. Warmly received by his new country, Ji returned its embrace as he came of age in New York's East Village and then attended Harvard University. But in 1950, after years of enjoying a life of relative ease while his countrymen suffered through war and civil strife, Ji felt driven by patriotism to volunteer to serve China in its conflict with his adoptive country in the Korean War. Ji's mastery of the English language and American culture launched his improbable career, eventually winning him the role of English interpreter for China's two top leaders: Premier Zhou Enlai and Party Chairman Mao Zedong. With a unique blend of Chinese insight and American candor, Ji paints insightful portraits of the architects of modern China: the urbane, practical, and avuncular Zhou, the conscience of the People's Republic; and the messianic, charismatic Mao, student of China's ancient past--his country's stern father figure. Ji is an eyewitness to modern Chinese history, including the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, the Nixon summit, and numerous momentous events in Tiananmen Square. As he became caught up in political squabbles among radical factions, Ji's past and charges against him of ""incorrect"" thinking subjected him to scrutiny and suspicion. He was repeatedly sent to a collective farm to be ""reeducated"" by the peasants. After the Mao years, Ji moved on to hold top diplomatic posts in the United States and the United Kingdom and then served as under-secretary-general of the United Nations. Today, he says, ""The Chinese know America better than the Americans know China. The risk is that we misperceive each other."" This highly accessible insider's chronicle of a struggling people within a developing powerhouse nation is also Ji Chaozhu's dramatic personal story, certain to fascinate and enlighten Western audiences."

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Reviews

"It is a relief to read an account by an urbane and often witty insider who neither idolizes nor demonizes China's top leaders.... Highly recommended.-- ""Library Journal Starred Review"" ""A useful account of some of the inner workings and conflicts within China's ruling elite."" -- ""Booklist"" ""It is a relief to read an account by an urbane and often witty insider who neither idolizes nor demonizes China's top leaders...Highly recommended."" -- ""Library Journal (starred review)"" ""This absorbing book should make an invaluable political (and personal) primer for anyone dealing with today's China."" -- ""Publishers Weekly"""

Author Information

"Ji Chaozhu was born on July 30, 1929, in the Shanxi Province of China. Throughout his decorated career, he has held posts in China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he was deputy director of the Department of Translation and Interpretation and deputy director of American and Oceanic Affairs. In 1982, he was appointed minister counselor of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United States of America, and he has served as China's ambassador to Fiji, Kiribati, Vanuatu, and the Court of St. James's. From 1991 to 1996, he served as the under-secretary-general of the United Nations. He currently resides in China with his wife. Norman Dietz is a writer, voice-over artist, and audiobook narrator. He has won numerous Earphones Awards and was named one of the fifty ""Best Voices of the Century"" by AudioFile magazine. He and his late wife, Sandra, transformed an abandoned ice-cream parlor into a playhouse, which served ""the world's best hot fudge sundaes"" before and after performances. The founder of Theatre in the Works, he lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania."

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