Raine McCandless

It’s an excellent book for gaining a better understanding of Chinese statecraft and political development. I especially respect how the authors take a respectful and insightful look into the forces that shape and affect historic Chinese political theorists and collective memories. This book exposes you to the long line of Chinese intellectuals and officials, from the last decades of the Qing Dynasty all the way to the early 2010s. Well-known figures like Mao or Sun Yat Sen are examined, but so are their predecessors that laid the intellectual foundations for their respective works. Again, the authors were very respectful and professional when discussing Chinese history and experiences. It’s hard to find quality English language literature on East Asian societies such as China or Japan, with many books hyper-fixating an exhausted subject like Samurai or Maoism and or borderline racist misrepresentations. That being said, be aware this book while still relevant, you will have an information gap about Xi Jinping and his role in shaping Chinese political theory and structures. The authors at the time of publishing, Xi’s term in office only just started and they had limited information on his personal political vision.

The author had his medical license revoked for two years out of concern for his competency as a doctor. You have been warned