Book review of the month, April, Part 2

Yup, once again I wrapped myself around another book and raced at warp speed to finish it, so this month I've also read 2 books and look forward to my next book.

The second book I read this month was Wild Swans by Jung Chang. It's an incredible journey into one woman's life and the life of her mother and grandmother as events in China unfold between 1909 and the early 80's.

I am struck over and over again with each book I read on China's incredibly recent history (1900's) about how much has changed in China and how fast it's changed. It's very hard at times to realize many of the events in the book, including the:

elimination of foot binding of women,
occupation by Japan of northern China,
age of the Koumintang unification/control,
land reform,
occupation of China by Russia,
Mao's early success and communist control,
the often times bewildering control during the middle and later stages of communist control,
the "cultural revolution",

these all took place over the last 60-80 years... during our lifetime. Some of the practices, events and cultural changes are shocking. The Great Leap Forward, when Mao rallied all of China to run backyard steel furnaces for the production of steel, during the late 50's, nearly all other activities cessed in order to support steel furnaces, this included but was not limited to teaching, farming, etc. Family woks were melted down and entire villages/communes ate in 'cantenes'. Harvest were lost, famines raged on and entire forest were cut for fuel.

The near constant change in campaigns in the political environment were conducted such that no matter the failure, upper control was maintain and lower level controllers were punished. This near constant change, upheaval and more so lack of understanding/deduction from the general population, were reasons Mao remained in control for so long and why to this day he is seemingly revered still though many famines and losses (life, culture, buildings and land) occured during his control.

Jung talks about the change in her family life, in that of the world in CHina as she saw it. from the burning of all non-communist books to be found, to the punishment and isolation of those who practiced the arts (writers, artists, etc) to the destruciton of the "old" including buildings and landmarks. She talks of the changes socially that took place in the family structure, between not only her parents but her grandparents. She walks us through a time and a place that I'm sure many who read it (without much knowledge of China's recent history) will find unbelievable and eye-opening all at once.

I found Jung's portrayal and story to be fascinating, sad and this book should be read by anyone with a tie to China. Her directness and questioning of the events during her life led the book to be banned from China.

It answers a lot of questions about the Chinese people, their pride, their hard work and dedication, it addresses cultural aspects and the intimate details of a family as it rises and falls again and again throughout the last 100 years and mainly through the Mao leadership time.